What's the Difference Between Profractional Laser and Fraxel?

Both ProFractional laser and Fraxel Restore are brand names for different resurfacing lasers. ProFractional laser: made by Sciton, 2940 nm Erbium/YAG laser.Fraxel Restore laser: made by Solta, 1550nm Erbium laser  Don't be confused by the brand names. For example, Fraxel also makes a CO2 laser (Fraxel Repair). Make sure when you are doing research (both on your own, and when consulting with a doctor) that you understand which laser is being offered.Both ProFractional and Fraxel are resurfacing lasers. That means they are meant to improve texture, wrinkles, acne scarring, pigment and to some degree, pore size. There are technical differences between the two lasers, however, they are both used to treat the same conditions. The ProFractional is an ablative laser - so potentially more improvement with less treatments, but also more down-time. Fraxel is really meant to be a series of treatments. Downtime (on average) is 2 to 4 days.                                                            

Fractional CO2 laser is an excellent tool for skin rejuvenation in our center in Santa Monica. We use the fractional multi-depth ablative approach to help resurface the skin, recontour acne scars, improve incisional plastic surgery scars, and reduce surface irregularities from skin tone to dark pigmentation. Our approach utilizes a multi-depth approach that targets melanocytes in the epidermis and collagen fibroblasts in the dermis. This approach can be combined with a TCA Peel in a process known as a sapphire peel. Fractional laser is excellent for acne scars and contour scars in the skin. Patients are advised to undergo skin protocols with Melarase creams before and after treatment to help reduce pigmentation. Melarase AM, Melarase PM, and Melapads can seriously improve surface sun damage and UV related pigmentation. After the laser, we expect redness for a few weeks as the skin improves. PRP and Hydrafacial enzyme facials can further improve skin quality after fractional co2.

Best,
Dr. Karamanoukian
Realself100 Surgeon

Dermabrasion is generally considered a harsh treatment for the skin and generally utilizes older technology.  I agree with Dr. Allen that you should be careful after dermabrasion and should wait at least 6 months prior to having another treatment.

However, to answer your question regarding the difference of profractional vs. fraxel.

Both Profractional Laser and Fraxel can improve acne scars.

Profractional Laser is a deeper laser (although not as aggressive as erbium laser resurfacing) and you will have some downtime for approximately 2-3 days while you heal. Profractional laser provides significant improvement after one treatment. However, it may need to be repeated to address deeper acne scars.
 

Fraxel Laser usually derives its benefits over the course of 5 to 6 treatments spaced one month apart. It is a more superficial laser than Profractional, and generally creates redness similar to a bad sunburn after each treatment. This redness subsides over 1 week, but does not require downtime.


Like most modalities, the treatment's success is dependent on the expertise of the user and the ability to use the correct modality or to combine to have the correct mix of modalities for a given problem.