Laser Skin Resurfacing

Laser skin resurfacing is a cosmetic treatment that should only be considered for reducing the appearance of deep wrinkles, significant abnormal pigmentation or deep acne scars.

The reason for this is that laser skin resurfacing is an invasive medical procedure that also requires a certain amount of downtime for recovery and healing of the skin.

Laser resurfacing treatments have these effects on the skin because as it resurfaces the skin it burns away the outer layers. This then triggers the skin to produce more collagen to replace what has been burned off.

During this time the skin needs time to repair itself, otherwise you could suffer permanent skin damage if your skin is not given enough time to heal.

In addition to this it important to remember that laser treated skin is also much more sensitive to the sun than normal untreated skin, which means you need to protect it with sunscreen every time you go outside.

Failure to do so can dramatically increase your risk of developing skin cancer.

What Benefits Does Laser Skin Resurfacing Have?

Laser skin resurfacing tends to work best for reducing the appearance of fine lines, shallow wrinkles, cross-hatched lines and abnormal skin pigmentation.

It can also be useful for treating deep scars such as acne scars, reducing the appearance of fine lines around the mouth commonly found with smokers, and repairing broken capillaries which are giving the skin a reddish flushed look.

One thing laser skin resurfacing is not an effective treatment for is sagging skin.

So if you are primarily concerned with lifting sagging skin, then your best option would be to have a thermal lift or a surgical face lift instead.

Recovery From Laser Treatment

Because laser skin resurfacing damages the top layers of your skin, you get the equivalent of somewhere between a first and second degree burn.

This puts your skin into repair mode and causes inflammation in the skin. The result is reddened and sensitive skin which can last up to three weeks.

During this time you won’t be able to expose your skin to the sun, so you will probably need to stay at home off work for at least 3-4 weeks before you fully recover.

You will also have to take antibiotics during this period to prevent you from developing an infection, and you will also have to take pain pills to help you make it through the recovery process.

Unfortunately many people require multiple laser treatments before they get acceptable results. So you can expect to repeat this recovery period at least 2-3 more times.

Laser Skin Resurfacing Side Effects

Since laser skin resurfacing is an invasive treatment, the risks of side effects are greater than other non invasive treatments.

Some of the side effects of laser treatments include scarring from the burns and an increase in abnormal skin pigmentation.

For this reason it is important that your skin surgeon explains the possible risks to you, and offers you a skin test so you can get some idea as to how your skin will react.

To minimise the side effects of laser skin resurfacing it is generally recommended that you get multiple light treatments done, spread over a period of time, rather than one very deep treatment.