The Aesthetic Skin Clinic: Fraxel

Cosmetic dermatology, cosmetic surgery, and plastic surgery in a safe medical environment

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Fraxel

Fraxel is a state of the art treatment for resurfacing skin without the down time. It improves the appearance of the skin by affecting only a fraction of the skin at a time, with thousands of microscopic laser spots. The tiny treatment zones of skin are known as Micro Thermal Zones, and the treatment works by fractional photothermolysis, heating only a small area of the skin at a time.

How does it work?

The Micro thermal zones penetrate deep into the dermis and eliminate old epidermal pigmented cells. The surrounding tissue is left unaffected so the healing time is much faster than if the entire area is resurfaced at once.

What conditions can be treated?

Typical conditions suitable for treatment are hyperpigmentation, fine wrinkles and lines, aged skin and acne scarring. A detailed consultation with your doctor will outline which areas of skin are appropriate for treatment. Because the fraxel laser treatment spares healthy tissue it is appropriate for use on even delicate skin such as the eyes, neck, chest and hands. It can be used to improve the quality and texture of wrinkled skin, particularly around the eyes, chin, top lip neck and décolleté area. Pigmentation and melasma are also successfully treated.

How many treatments will I need?

Clinical studies suggest that an effective treatment regime is three to five sessions, spaced about seven days apart. Treatment plans can be very flexible, even when spaced weeks or months apart, results are outstanding. Each treatment session targets 15 to 20 % of the skins surface, outlining the need for successive treatments

Is it safe?

Fraxel laser treatment can be performed in your doctors office. It is a powerful laser treatment that must be carried out by a trained and experienced practitioner to ensure that the correct area is treated at the correct levels.

Does it hurt?

A topical anaesthetic is applied for one and a half hours prior to treatment. During the treatment you will experience a mild burning sensation across the skin as the laser is passed over the area. This increases with the number of passes, but as the skin is cooled during treatment is completely tolerable.

How would I prepare for the treatment?

Having had a consultation, you will arrive for your treatment and a local anaesthetic will be applied. The treatment area will be cleansed, and a blue water soluble dye will be applied to highlight the contours of the skin to be treated. The colour tint will be washed off after treatment.

How is the treatment carried out?

The laser head will be passed over the treatment area in one direction, and then a second pass will be carried out in the opposite direction. A total of 8 to 10 passes will be carried out in total. The skin will be cooled with a fan during treatment, and with cold compresses following treatment.

Possible side effects

You will experience a mild sunburnt sensation for about an hour after treatment, then virtually no discomfort. The skin will have a pinkish tone for about 5 days, this is a normal sign that the skin is heeling deeply. Swelling is minimal and resolves in two to three days.

New epidermal skin develops immediately as the healing process occurs. During healing your skin will have a bronze appearance that lasts from 3 to 14 days depending on the treatment level. Your skin will naturally exfoliate as the reorganised epidermal skin replaces dead tissue. Flaking is similar to that of mild sunburn.

Care following treatment

The use of sunscreen following treatment is very important to protect the skin during the healing phase and for several weeks following treatment.

Makeup can be applied after 24 hours once the initial epidermal healing has occurred.


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