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What is the difference between the products I buy at the spa or department store and those I get at your office?
Over the counter products at the mall or those used in spa treatments may feel good, but have no scientifically proven value in reversing aging and sun damage of the skin. They may carry the same or similar name to those in our office, but they are not the same ingredients at the same strength.
Extensive medical research has gone into developing proven skincare products. These include tretinoin products such as Retin-A and Renova, hydroquinone in a 4% compound, alphahydroxy acids such as glycolic acid and lactic acid, and topical Vitamin C products in specific concentration and forms. Always look at the active ingredients.
What is the difference between Botox® and fillers like Restylane®?
Botox is used to weaken facial muscles to help prevent wrinkles from worsening or, in some cases, slowly improve wrinkles that are already established. Facial fillers such as Restylane or Radiesse plump deep wrinkles or folds (such as the laugh lines or frown lines) by “filling them” up to improve the facial contour. In some circumstances, facial fillers can be used to accentuate the cheeks, jaw line, and/or depressions that appear as bags under the eyes. Think of Botox as “smoothing” out wrinkles and Restylane and Radiesse as “filling” where volume is needed. Often both are prescribed for overall enhancement.
I have broken capillaries on the side of my nose. Can these be permanently removed? These broken capillaries can be improved substantially and in many cases eradicated through laser therapy. In many cases, one visit is all that is necessary. Good skin care/sun block helps prevent sun damage which could exaggerate the capillaries.
What does your practice do for pain management? Though we provide topical cream to the skin to help reduce discomfort, many patients tell us the procedure is not painful enough to justify topical anesthetic.
What is the difference between “ablative” and “non-ablative” procedures? Ablative resurfacing focuses on improving the facial wrinkles. There is significant downtime due to its effect on the skin’s surface. The top layer of skin is removed which dramatically improves the skin tone, but patients will undergo redness and crusting for up to 8 to 12 weeks after resurfacing.
Non ablative procedures focus on improving the skin complexion and removing pigmentation resulting from sun damage. While non ablative treatment will not improve wrinkles to the extent of a CO2 or Erbium laser, many patients are willing to sacrifice some of the results in exchange for the minimal downtime and recovery offered by the Fraxel laser.
What is the difference between the three Fraxel laser machines?
All three Fraxel machines use the same technology called fractional resurfacing—a safe, noninvasive procedure that passes through the top layer of skin, stimulating the collagen below resulting in its healing from the inside, out. The three machines are Fraxel re:fine, Fraxel re:store and Fraxel re:pair. Re:fine provides gentle resurfacing for women in the 20’s and 30’s to prevent or address the first signs of aging such as fine lines and mild pigment problems. Re:store is great for skin flaws not necessarily due to the aging process such as acne scars and melasma. It is also the gold standard for treating fine lines around the eyes, wrinkles, age spots and poor texture. Re:pair is reserved for women in their 50’s and 60’s seeking significant resurfacing procedure to treat deeper wrinkles and skin laxity. This laser is the one most closely compared with the CO2 laser mentioned above.
When does a skin treatment become a surgical procedure?
Ablative procedures require a general anesthetic. Anytime a patient feels that their skin looks the best it can yet they want more lift, it requires facial lifting to return the underlying skin architecture to a younger more anatomic position.
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