Fraxel^®

Dr Solomon’s Facial Surgery Centre in Thornhill Canada is thrilled to now offer:

Fraxel Laser technology. Fraxel® laser technology is a relatively new approach to treating aging and sun damaged skin. It can offer results that are more dramatic than other non ablative laser technology. Its results can be dramatic without the side effect profile of ablative lasers. Specifically ablative lasers can lead to hypo pigmentation or lighter skin. As Fraxel is done with multiple less intense treatments the risks and the recovery after each treatment is dramatically less than ablative laser technology. Fraxel refers to pixel technology where the laser only treats a fraction of the skin allowing for less downtime and easier recovery. Fraxel is ideal for improving skin texture, tone, and pore size, reduce or remove brown sun spots, reduce acne or facial scars and rejuvenate face and neck skin. Fraxel can also be used following cosmetic and reconstructive surgery to improve facial scars.

Facial Plastic Surgeons, Cosmetic Dermatologists and General Plastic Surgeons are using Fraxel® laser now to smooth fine lines and wrinkles on the face. The procedure can improve the cosmetic appearance of the skin by improving texture reducing sun spots and pigmentation on the face, neck, chest, back, forearms and hands. Fraxel is remarkable in that it can potentially benefit many skin types with fewer risks of conventional lasers.

How is Fraxel Done? The procedure is done with topical anaesthetic. A cooling device is also used for patient comfort. The procedure takes one to two hours and varies amongst patients. The procedure generally requires several passes with the laser and multiple treatments. If there is a history of cold sores (herpes simplex), an oral antiviral medication is started one day prior to treatment and continued for another 3 days. Typically, 3 to 5 treatments are necessary, about 3 to 4 weeks apart. Results are usually apparent within 1 to 3 months. A maintenance treatment done once or twice a year can maintain the results. Initially the skin tends to be puffy for a day or so, red for one day, pink for a few days and then appears tanned or bronzed for 3 to 14 days, followed by flaking.

Make-up can be applied immediately after the treatment and men can continue to shave. Most patients return to their routine activities by the next day.

How many treatments will I need? The number of treatments varies depending on the condition. Generally 3-5 treatments are needed for facial skin rejuvenation. For acne or facial scar treatments up to 6 treatments may be needed for optimal results. At Dr Solomon’s Facial Cosmetic Surgery clinic patients can purchase treatments as they go through the rejuvenation process. As the ideal number of treatments varies, patients should feel no obligation to purchase multiple treatments up front. The results will speak for themselves.

How Will I Look After the Treatment?
The skin tends to be slightly red and swollen for a day and then slowly fade and appear tanned for 3-15 days. The skin will likely flake over the first week. Most patients return to their routine activities by the next day.

Can I Obtain Treatment for Facial Veins at the Same Time as Fraxel?
If rosacea, telangiectasia or spider viens are present, they can be treated with intense pulsed light. We offer the syneron elos system for vascular lesions and have found excellent results with this technology.

Can I Have Botox and Fillers at the Same Time as Fraxel?
Dr Solomon is an expert injector of botox and facial fillers and is happy to see patients in consultation at the same time as they are undergoing laser treatment. Fraxel can be done at the same time as these other cosmetic treatments. Fillers such as resylane, juviderm, botox, can all be done at the same time as Fraxel.

Are there Different Fraxel lasers???
Fraxel is the first laser made with fraxel patented technology. There are a number of other lasers that are now using technology that is aimed at achieving fractionated laser effects. The sciton laser called the profractional laser is different from the fraxel as it is actually an ablative laser. It does work to ablate or vaporize the skin in spot sizes. This also has benefits but likely has more swelling, bleeding and downtime. Some physicians find advantages to both technologies. Dr Solomon Facial Plastic Surgery clinic and Skin Medx have chosen the Fraxel technology as it is leading edge technology with the excellent track record.

There is now a Co2 fraxel laser. This laser achieves similar results to Fraxel but does so with a shorter treatment time but more downtime per treatment. The C02 Fraxel laser is an ablative laser with fraxel pixel technology.

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