Can Excel V laser get rid of my old acne scars before the CO2 fractional laser to remove my sebaceous hyperplasia?

Question

I have sebaceous hyperplasia, and my doctor recommend me to use the CO2 fractional laser to remove it. Here is summer and I was afraid to do it for the sunny days, so I will wait until winter. The problem is that I have old acne scars (a few) in my cheeks and a few new (just 3) PIH from acne after I used Tretinoin and I am wondering if I can do my Excel V Cutera laser first and one or two month later can I remove the Sebaceous Hyperplasia.

Jason Emer, MD · Answer

desiccation is best with needle or plasma pen over co2, and it will not be cured it will be improved but will always come back unless you maintain it with non ablative lasers or peels like Cosmelan and enlighten. sun in LA shouldn't hold you back from doing lasers. excel V will not cure scars just redness,  tretinoin is only good for acne. it seems like you really need a treatment plan and proper peels and skincare.

at home peels like cosmelan, enlighten and aerify along with dermarolling (MTS roller with anteage MD ampules weekly) should be started now

if you have post inflammatory hyperpigmentation/melasma/discoloration that needs cosmelan or enlighten peels at home which we can do virtually and send to your home along with aerify peels regularly, vivatia foam, restorsea 10x, faith essence serum, and cosmelan 2 cream.

Acne scar treatment needs a combination approach for improvement.  For the best results, one should target the acne scar type.  As everyone has a unique pattern of acne scarring, the best solution is a tailored one.  Typically you need fillers like bellafill and sculptra for atrophic indented type scars with or without subcision.  Subcision for depressed tethered scars.  Vascular lasers like yellow laser, aerolase, excel V or IPL for redness or thick scars. And lasers such as fraxel, erbium, co2 or fractional radiofrequency like venus viva, skinfinity, intensif or fractora microneedling RF for textural issues and superficial scarring.  Deep ice pick scars and narrow box car scars are best treated with TCA CROSS and punch excision.  All lasers are combined with microneedling and PRP to get even better results and improve healing times.   The majority of patients will have a collection of different scar types, and hence a tailored treatment plan is needed by an expert physician.  It is never about the laser or product that gives the results, its about the expert behind the equipment that gets you the outcome.  Scars cannot be cured and will need life-long treatments to maintain and build on the results.  For those at high risk for hyperpigmentation (darker skin types or asian or hispanic or mixed ethnicities) we already pre-treat the skin with cosmelan or enlighten lightening peels to prevent complications from energy-based or chemical-based treatments.  Best, Dr. Emer.

Steven F. Weiner, MD · Answer

Excel V laser is best for early acne scars which are red. Old acne scars will not respond to Excel V. However, the CO2 laser is a good choice for acne scars. Acne scars best respond to combination of therapies including TCA Cross, fillers, subcision, RFM, and lasers. It really depends on the type of scars and physical evaluation to determine what is best for you.

Can Excel V laser get rid of my old acne scars before the CO2 fractional laser to remove my sebaceous hyperplasia?

Answers (2)

Recommended reading

Everything you need to know about Excel V

Our mission is to create a world where every investment in modern beauty is Worth It.

Can Excel V laser get rid of my old acne scars before the CO2 fractional laser to remove my sebaceous hyperplasia?

Answers (2)

Browse related questions

Recommended reading

Everything you need to know about Excel V

Our mission is to create a world where every investment in modern beauty is Worth It.