Does Fraxel Actually Work on White Stretch Marks?

Question

I have had my stretch marks for about 6 years. They are a white/silvery color. Will Fraxel actually help?

Sonia Badreshia-Bansal, MD · Answer

Thank you for your question. Unfortunately, the stretch mark that has been there for awhile will not go away.  The only way to minimize  stretch marks is surgery, for example, tummy tuck for stretch marks on abdomen.  I hope this helps.

Sabrina Fabi, MD · Answer

Fraxel restore has been found to work well for improving the appearance of white stretch marks.

Daryl K. Hoffman, MD · Answer

Fraxel helps improve the appearance of old white stretch marks. A test patch is important to avoid hyperpigmentation when treating skin of color. It is done with topical anesthetic cream so it is not painful. Multiple treatments can be done with incremental improvement expected with each treatment.

Michael A. Persky, MD · Answer

Hi rr, I agree with Drs. Reichel and Weiner. I have found that Fraxel repair (fractionated CO2 laser) works the best for stretch marks. It takes a series of treatments for best results. Again, expect improvement but not resolution of the stretch marks. An East African oil, Marula Oil, has been used to treat newly formed stretched marks with success. Good luck and be well. Dr. P

Jennifer Reichel, MD · Answer

Lets start with this: Stretch marks, especially white ones, are very hard to treat. If they are new and red, the Vbeam Perfecta laser can work really well. For white stretch marks, I think the Fraxel Restore probably works the best. However, you will only get a percentage of improvement, and it varies from patient to patient. I always start with a small test area and treat that area for a series of 4 treatments (spaced 4-6 weeks apart) and then the patient and I evaluate if it is worth it to do a larger area. One of the risks of the Fraxel off of the face is that you can get a red/brown discoloration. So we have to watch for this too. The other option would be to try a fractional CO2 laser such as the Lumenis Total FX. You can have some improvement with this too. Again - test patch.

Tracy Evans, MD, FAAD · Answer

I will start by saying stretch marks are very difficult to treat.  With most treatment options, expect 30% - 50% improvement.  I like to use a series of Fraxel Dual treatments to improve the appearance of stretch marks.  We numb the skin with a numbing cream and use a cold air device to make the treatment more comfortable.  The entire treatment takes about 15-20 minutes.  Your skin will be red and swollen for a few days.  You should see some improvement after each treatment, but remember they build on each other.  That means you will see more improvement after treatments 3, 4, and 5 than 1 or 2.

Jhonny Salomon, MD · Answer

Fraxel works great on red and pink stretch marks. However it will definitely help improve the appereance of your stretch marks.

Steven F. Weiner, MD · Answer

I have treated several people for this problem. The best you can expect is about 40% improvement, and thats after about 4-5 treatments. There really is no other treatments available for this problem other than excision.

Richard Fitzpatrick, MD (in memoriam) · Answer

Fraxel Re:Store may gradually help white stretch marks, but the degree of improvement is in the range of 25 – 50 %. Whether this is worth doing often requires a test area to decide whether to treat all areas or not. Using Retin-A topically at the same time as doing laser treatments may boost the response as well. There is a recent study showing that delivery of Retin-A into small laser channels (giving much higher tissue levels) done on a monthly basis x4 treatments was very successful as a treatment for white stretch marks.

Does Fraxel Actually Work on White Stretch Marks?

Answers (9)

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