LASER
Essentially, lasers can be divided into 2 main categories, non ablative, aka pigment lasers, and ablative, aka resurfacing lasers.
Pigment laser – Good for skin tone issues
What is a pigment laser?
It is a specific wavelength of light – 1064nm that is absorbed by melanin and water, hence removing brown spots and generating collagen in your skin.
What can pigment lasers treat?
- Pigmentation (such as , tattoos, freckles, sun spots, age spots, brown spots, birthmarks)
- Acne marks, acne and pimples
- Glow and radiance + Skin rejuvenation
What are the benefits of pigment laser treatment?
- Lightening of your pigmentation (freckles, sun spots, acne marks, tattoos) in general from 60 to 90%. Pigments absorb the laser energy. These pigments gradually shatter into smaller fragments and are naturally cleared away by the body.
- Control of pimples and acne, reduced breakouts and improved oil control. Laser energy can aid in oil control via shrinking oil glands, eliminate P-acne, which is the bacteria that cause pimples and acne, and reduce further breakouts.
- Brightened, glowing and radiant skin. The laser helps even and lighten your skin tone and makes it brighter and clearer. It cleans the face, removes dead skin cells, oil, impurities.
How does the laser treatment feel?
Will the laser treatment be painful?
The laser energy feels like many tiny toothpicks on your skin which is very tolerable.
What are the side effects of laser treatment?
- In expert hands, the risks of a laser treatment are very small:
- Laser toning: Generally leads to mild redness, if any.
- Spot treatment: May result in tiny swelling or brown spots for 3 to 7 days after the treatment.
Is there any downtime?
Strictly no, which is the beauty of this laser. A mild facial flushing might be present for 15mins after the laser. No change in your lifestyle whatsoever.
What are post laser instructions?
Avoid harsh products, sun exposure for the next 7 days. Also apply a good sunscreen and moisturiser.
Fractional resurfacing Laser: Good for skin textural concerns
What is fractional Skin resurfacing?
- Fractional laser treatments create micro-thermal tunnels deep into the skin. The laser ablates (or vaporizes) the microscopic columns of skin while leaving the surrounding tissue untreated.
- The body’s natural healing process creates new, healthy collagen to replace the columns of affected tissue. Once healed, skin texture improves and lines soften.
- The results are gradual and people can continue to see improvements in their skin for several months after their last fractional laser treatment.
Who are suitable candidate?
- Basically, men or women with skin tone and texture issues.
- Those who have mild to moderate signs of skin aging, fine lines and wrinkles, and mildly lax skin tone.
- Non-uniform skin tone and color can be corrected as well as textural problems such as scars from acne.
What are the benefits of fractional laser resurfacing?
- Fractional laser skin resurfacing has three significant benefits compared to the traditional laser skin resurfacing:
- Safety: The fractional array of microbeams is gentler than traditional ablative skin resurfacing, and does not lead to bulk damage to your skin.
- Comfort: Each tiny microbeam focuses on a small area, which re-epithelializes within 24 hours. This minimizes the risk of scarring, infection or long-term pigmentation changes.
- Downtime: Downtime is controlled, on average 3 to 5 days. Depending on the intensity of treatment, most fractional laser patients can return to normal activities within days.
Is it painful?
- Fractional Skin Resurfacing can feel like A MILD sunburn.
- It may be slightly uncomfortable varying on each patient’s pain tolerance.
- There is minimal downtime with Fractional Skin Resurfacing. You can experience redness and swelling to treated areas for up to 5 days.
What can you expect after a treatment?
- Immediately following the treatment, the skin will be red, swollen. These effects are normal and indicate a successful treatment.
- The swelling and redness is temporary and will improve in days. As the micro-tunnels heal, the skin will feel dry and begin to flake.
- You may also experience a bronzed look once the redness subsides for approximately 3-5 days. The bronzed skin will eventually flake off revealing fresh new skin.
What are the complications of laser resurfacing?
- Milia, which are small white bumps, may appear in the laser-treated areas during healing. These are temporary.
- Cold sore may occur, especially after laser skin resurfacing around the mouth. Hence if you have an active cold sore, we will delay the treatment.
- Patients are encouraged to sleep on an extra pillow at night to help reduce the swelling after laser resurfacing. Cold compress application is also helpful in the first 24-48 hours.
Chemical Medical Peels
What can medical chemical peels do?
Medical chemical Peels serve 3 key purposes:
1) remove outer layer of dead skin
2) increase the cell turnover rate, giving you clean and clear skin
3) unclog pores
– The most common ones use glycolic, salicylic or other hydroxy acids or TCA (trichloroacetic acid). Light peels can be repeated every 4-12 weeks.
What are the side effects of medical chemical peels?
- Temporary pinkness and sun sensitivity for a week is normal.
- Some patient may experience temporary discolouration for 4 to 12 weeks.
What is a medical chemical peel treatment like?
- First the solution is left on your face for a fixed period of time, usually minutes.
- You may feel a light tingling sensation. The peel is then washed off.
- Your skin may get pink and will start to peel from 1-3 days, lasting for 2 to 5 days on average. With a light peel the peeling can be microscopic.
How much do peels cost?
These usually range from $150 for a light peel.
What is the difference between a home peel and a home microdermabrasion kit? (PMD device)
- Home peels are lighter versions of medical grade peels which can only be performed in clinics.
- Home microdermabrasion kits serve the purpose of simple facial rejuvenation through removal of dead skin and surface impurities.
- It is a safe and zero downtime treatment and helps with giving you cleaner and clearer skin. There are many such products in the market so buyers beware.
