Overview
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No down time!
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No anesthesia required!
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Treats wrinkles, pigment, vascular!
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4 treatments.
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2-3 days redness.
Fraxel Laser Treatment is a
revolutionary new approach to skin rejuvenation.
This one laser therapy allows improvement of the full constellation of
aging changes in the skin . Typically,
a series of four treatments is used to create a reduction in skin wrinkling
along with improvement in pigment irregularities and vascular changes.
A minimal degree of skin tightening is also often obtained.
All this is accomplished without a raw skin surface or time away from
work or social activities.
How Fraxel Laser Treatment Works
Traditional peeling techniques, including laser
resurfacing, remove the surface layers of the skin leaving a raw skin surface
which requires 1-2 weeks to heal. The
removal of surface layers evens out the hills and valleys of the wrinkles or
acne scars. Newer nonablative
techniques, such as CoolTouch and Thermage/Thermacool heat the mid-layers of the
skin while cooling the epidermis or surface of the skin.
This stimulates the body to remodel skin, smoothing or tightening it.
No downtime is produced but the improvement takes several months to see
and varies greatly from individual to individual.
Fraxel Laser Treatment exposes the skin to thousands of
tiny pinpoints of light. These
create microscopic columns of coagulation in the skin called microthermal zones
(MTZ’s). Source cells for
healing these zones come from the large normal areas surrounding the coagulated
pinpoint. Over 2-3 weeks the body
clears out the MTZ. The skin does not have a raw surface during any of this
process. The result of this process
is the removal of sundamaged skin (unlike nonablatives which only stimulate
remodeling). This removal reduces
wrinkles or scars, pigment variation, brown age spots, spider veins and other
vascular changes in the skin. Active
acne is also generally reduced.
What to Expect
Your skin will be cleansed gently
and an anesthetic gel applied. After 45 minutes, a blue dye will be applied.
Next, the face is treated by passing the laser hand piece back and forth
over the skin. A warmth and faint
prickling sensation is felt during the treatment, which requires 15-20 minutes.
After the treatment, the skin is cleansed with a warm towel and
moisturizer applied. A tingly or
mild sunburned sensation is experienced for 1-2 hours after treatment.
The day after treatment, makeup can be worn normally and you may resume
all normal activities. A pink
sunburn appearance typically lasts for 2-3 days.
The treatments are repeated every 2-3 weeks until the
series is complete. Results should
be clearly visible within two weeks of finishing a series, although the skin
will continue to improve for several months.
Limitations of
Fraxel
Fraxel laser treatment is not designed as a substitute for
surgical skin tightening such as facelift.
The degree of wrinkle reduction will vary from individual to individual
but can not be predicted in advance. The
degree of wrinkle reduction with a typical series will be less than that
obtained by deep chemical or laser peels. This
represents a trade-off that is balanced by avoidance of raw skin, recovery time,
sedation or anesthesia. While
risks of treatment include infection, hyperpigmentation, hypopigmentation,
blistering, protracted erythema and scarring the safety profile has been
extremely good compared to chemical peels and laser resurfacing.
One of the most impressive advantages of Fraxel Laser Treatment is that
the improvement in wrinkles seems to be much more consistent than with
nonablative treatments.
If you have a history of cold sores,
hyperpigmentation or other pigmentary problems or dry eye syndrome, be sure to
inform Dr. Bass during your consultation.
What it Costs
The treatments are offered as a series of four.
Prices vary depending on body area being treated.
Please contact the office for more details on series and follow-up
treatment pricing.
Dr. Bass Leading the Way with Fraxel Laser Treatment
Dr. Bass is one of the leaders in the introduction of
Fraxel Laser Treatment. He was one
of the first doctors in the nation to start working with Fraxel laser after it
was approved. He has lectured extensively on Fraxel laser treatment in
scientific and training forums. Dr. Bass has
established a well known reputation over the past 18 years for his laser
research and leading role in technology development and evaluation in aesthetic
surgery. He is Director of the
Minimally Invasive Plastic Surgery Program and the Emerging Technologies and
Techniques in Plastic Surgery Symposium at NYU Medical Center.
Through these activities, he develops and evaluates new technologies as
well as training plastic surgeons in their use. In addition, he has served on the Board of Directors of the
American Society for Lasers in Surgery & Medicine as well as the Device and
Technique Assessment Committee of the Plastic Surgery Educational Foundation and
the Non-Surgical Techniques Committee of the American Society for Aesthetic
Plastic Surgery.
Selected Research by Dr. Bass Relating to
Fraxel Laser
Presentations
“Radiofrequency energy, lasers, -Erbium laser and a CO2
retrospective Fraxel laser treatment, new lasers –What’s real”.
Anti-Aging, Skin Care and Non-Invasive Cosmetic Procedures Symposium.
Plastic Surgery Educational Foundation.
Boston, Massachusetts. July
2006.
“Fractional photothermolysis: Laser resurfacing in the 21st
century”. Emerging Technologies
& Techniques in Plastic Surgery. NYU
Medical Center. New York, New York.
May 2006.
“Results with Fraxel”.
Innovations in Aesthetic Plastic Surgery Symposium. American Society for
Aesthetic Plastic Surgery. Orlando,
Florida. April 2006 “Fraxel laser
treatment for photorejuvenation”.
Emerging
Technologies and Techniques in Plastic Surgery.
NYU Medical Center. New
York, New York. May 2005.
“Beyond
laser resurfacing and nonablative remodeling: Fraxel laser treatment”.
American Society of Plastic Surgeons.
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. October
2004.
“Fraxel
resurfacing”. Emerging Technologies and
Techniques in Plastic Surgery. NYU Medical Center. New York, New York. May
2004.
Course
Director, Introduction to lasers for dermatologists and plastic surgeons.
American Society for Laser Medicine & Surgery.
Dallas, Texas. April 2004.
Course
Director, Lasers
and photorejuvenation in cosmetic surgery. American Society of Plastic
Surgeons. San Diego, California. October 2003.
