Laser Skin Resurfacing Procedure

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Laser skin resurfacing will take place in a specialised clinic with all of the equipment and medical provisions that you might need.  The place where your treatment will take place ought to have already been shown to you during your consultation session.  You will be placed under a local anaesthetic before undergoing the treatment, and some people also have sedation, although for large areas such as full facial treatment sometimes a general anaesthetic is used. This is to help to keep the process as comfortable as possible.  Depending on the area being treated you may have to wear protective eye goggles. During your treatment you will feel some discomfort, alike to a snapping on the skin, but most people find this very tolerable, only causing mild discomfort. 

During the Procedure

Before the laser is applied a cleanser will be used to clean your skin of any toxins.  Sometimes an anti-biotic cream is also applied to prevent any infections or viral episodes.  During the procedure the laser will be applied to your skin, reaching beneath the top layer to stimulate the cells beneath.  Short blasts of the light target certain specified areas and can be very specific in their locality.  This means that very small areas can be treated just as effectively as large one.  The depth of the laser is also very easily controlled, allowing deeper areas to be manipulated if required for example when reducing the visual impact of scars or deep wrinkles.

The laser works to direct light into your skin, to promote a higher growth of collagen production and to smooth out your skin.  How this occurs depends on which type of laser you have chosen for your treatment.  Lasers that are non-ablative will encourage this by warming your skin and stimulating the collagen without removing any skin cells on the surface.  Ablative lasers will remove the top layer of the skin being treated, and using light and warmth will reveal deeper, more even skin below. 

The length of time it will take to complete your treatment will depend on how large the area being treated is, what kind of laser is being used and your skin type.  Most treatments of the face will take around half an hour to complete, but some treatments might take up to an hour.  Your practitioner will be able to advise you on how long your treatment is likely to last during your consultation.

After the procedure at the clinic

After your procedure you will may be asked to stay at the clinic for a few hours, your skin might be dressed and this ought to be left on for at least a day, or an anti-biotic cream will be applied.  Different practitioners have different ideas about leaving the area open or covering it.  Once the dressing, if one is used, is removed you will need to keep the area moist through regular application of a cream of gel similar to Vaseline.  If one isn’t used then you will need to continually apply moisturiser or an approved cream to the area treated.

After your laser skin resurfacing procedure you are likely to be able to leave when you feel you are ready.  You will not be able to drive that day, so it is important that you have someone prepared to take you home.  Once at home you will need to clean the skin regularly to prevent any infection from setting in.  A recovery normally takes up to three weeks, although everyone’s skin will heal at different rates and recovery time can also be influenced by the type of laser used.

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