Cosmetic Surgery and Beauty Magazine #67

feature
CO 2
ablative laser
With traditional ablative laser, the whole of a selected target
area is damaged, deep into the dermis (in effect, burnt).
Many laser and skin specialists believe full CO 2
laser
treatments are still the gold standard for the most significant
skin tightening and smoothing results. With these significant
results, however, come significant downtime, increased risk
of complications, and prolonged redness and crusting of
the treatment area for up to three months, and even more.
BEST
FOR
Deeper lines, skin tightening, acne scarring,
significant sun damage.
Non-ablative laser
Non-ablative lasers penetrate the skin without visibly
wounding the skin’s surface. They work by heating
the targeted tissue without actually destroying it. A
series of treatments may be necessary to see the
desired results; between three and six is typical.
There is minimal or no downtime involved.
BEST
FOR
Minimal sun damage, age spots and
irregular pigmentation, spider veins,
redness such as rosacea, acne and
unwanted hair people, as well as
people with more advanced signs
of skin ageing who can’t afford the
downtime of an ablative treatment.
Intense Pulsed Light
While not a laser, Intense Pulsed Light (IPL) penetrates deep
into the skin using different wavelengths of light, depending
on the condition to be treated. It does not injure the surface,
so there should be no downtime. It can improve skin texture
and colour as well as reduce pore size.
BEST
FOR
Hyperpigmentation, including age spots
and freckles, sun damage, overall skin
rejuvenation.
Fractional laser
Like ablative laser, fractional laser also causes injury to the
skin, but only microscopic areas of skin are affected so the
treatment area heals much faster.
The laser beam is fractionated into thousands of tiny
shafts of light. These penetrate the deeper layers of the
skin, causing microscopic injuries to the skin, while leaving
the surrounding skin perfectly intact.
The skin then repairs those tiny shafts by pushing out
the old, damaged skin and replacing it with new skin. The
targeted heat damage also helps to shrink existing collagen
for an immediate firming effect.
This process only causes fractional damage and allows
the skin to heal much faster than if the whole area was
treated. It causes no visible wounds and requires less
downtime than traditional ablative lasers. Recovery time is
generally between one and three days.
Fractional laser is also available in a non-ablative system,
a milder treatment to target early signs of ageing and
sun damage for younger patients or those wanting a skin
pick-me-up.
BEST
FOR
Improving the appearance of age
spots, wrinkles and lines and skin
discolourations. It can be used on the
delicate skin around the eyes and mouth.
Photodynamic Therapy
(PDT)
PDT is a two-step procedure and is commonly used
to treat skin complaints such as acne and acne
scarring. First, a solution that makes the skin more
sensitive to light is applied to the treatment area and
left on for 30 minutes or longer. Next, a light source is
beamed onto the treatment area.
This process can improve the appearance of
redness, age spots and freckles, and improves
the overall texture and appearance of the skin. It’s
important to look after the skin post-treatment,
protecting it from the sun and other bright light. Sun
exposure after PDT can be very painful and result in
severe sunburn and blistering.
BEST
FOR
Acne, photoageing and skin cancer
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