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Laser Resurfacing Reviews
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Vanity from Ontario
January 28, 2012
| Pros | - Smoother Skin - Eliminated superficial scarring on cheeks - Even skin tone - Two day downtime + one vanity day - My marionette lines are gone |
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| Cons | When you take off the Vaseline ready to see your GORGEOUS skin you just paid a fortune for... you find whiteheads all over your nose, cheeks and chin. -I thought my life was over. |
| Bottom line | If I read these reviews before I had my Pro-Fractional laser operation - I don't think I ever would have gone through with it... It is not THAT BAD you guys. It all depends on what the doctor is working with. I am a 21 year old female who has had a history of persistently light-moderate acne - depending on what time of the month it is. I had a problem with some superficial dents on my cheeks and really just wanted my skin to look like a 12 year olds. If I had baby skin and a few pimples I could live with that. Procedure was PAINLESS ok.. PAINLESS!!!! My doctor performed at 11% and 200 microns with Licodine numbing cream before hand and the procedure lasted about 10-15min. It was uncomfortable around my eyes and chin but I would not say it was painful - more irritating than anything and I have NO tolerance to pain. If i get a papercut I will cry all day from my low pain tolerance and neurosis. I did not bleed - I had about 10 dots of blood that you could not notice unless you were right up to my face. 48 hours later I washed my face and was mortified by my breakout and uneven skin texture/tone but the next morning it was 40% better with 70% of the new breakouts gone. This is a procedure you really have to wait on - be realistic. They are not burning off everything in sight - they are creating 1000's of microscopic pinholes in your skin. You wanted fast healing? Well your going to have to wait for the results. In three weeks I am getting another one done at 300 microns. I definitely think everyone should stop reading all these negative comments and think for themselves. My choice was a very fast one, I had read about the laser, and in 48 hours I was at the dermatologists. Best choice I have made for my skin in a long time |
| Recommended | Yes |
| Price paid | $750.00 |
| Acne severity | light |
anonymous
December 22, 2011
| Pros | It works. |
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| Cons | It is painful, expensive, scary and you can't leave home for at least 3 days. |
| Bottom line | I am quite surprised to see that so many people have negative experiences with this. I have done this 3 times now. I have acne scars but no fresh acne. About 3 years ago, I did one round of FCO followed by a lighter round about 2 months later to further stimulate the collagen growth. I definitely saw improvements over the next few months/years. Smaller scars has disappeared while the larger/deeper ones looked shallower. I did not realise how much my skin had improved until I saw my "before" photos from 3 years ago. That was enough for me to go ahead and do it again a 3rd time. So far, it has been 1.5 weeks since I had my 3rd round. The effect it has had on my remaining scars was above my expectations. I am still a little pink from it but the healing seems to be complete. With a bit of light makeup, it is almost as though I have never had any scars. The first time around, I did my research based on the procedure itself (how it works, what to expect, how to take care, etc) but not so much on reviews and feedback. I have only just seen these reviews so it is a little surprising. If I had seen this earlier, I might never have dared to attempt the procedure. I guess the effect really depends on your skin type, the care taken by the dermatologist and also the after-care. All I can say is make sure you have a qualified and creditable dermatologist to carry out the procedure. If you happen to have extremely sensitive skin, you may want to reconsider going through with it as it may not be suitable for your skin. If you are still having active acne, you may want to ask for oral antibiotics to suppress it as the laser treatment stimulates the skin and may cause fresh breakouts. From days 1 - 5, it is quite normal to see "additional" scars, redness, peeling, crusting (you name it!). I will admit that it is really scary. I call it the "toast bread" look. But it is only temporary. It will get better when your skin heals. I think it is def |
| Recommended | Yes |
Mal from Singapore
September 25, 2011
| Pros | Reduced my scars, made some of them go away completely. Definitely see a huge improvement! |
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| Cons | Downtime. |
| Bottom line | I just wish to share my experience on the Co2 Fractional Laser (SmartXide). Was initially very afraid because of all the negative reviews I saw here, but decided to go ahead anyway because if you never try, you never know. It's been a week and a half since my treatment and I am so happy I went for this. A little background - I am 23, Chinese, fair skin and have mild scarring (about 10 small ice-pick scars and a few boxcar scars). I asked my doctor before treatment what are the possible risks and he told me the main risk is hyperpigmentation. This doesn't happen to all people, just some. I shared with him about what some people say here about more scars, visible pin-pricks and grid marks from the laser even weeks after their treatment. He said this is because the settings of the laser were set too high by the doctor. If you are really concerned, just ask your doctor for possible risks, and ask him to give you a light setting for your first treatment. A 9-12mj will give you downtime for 3-5 days. I did a 17mj treatment which was enough for me. I think some doctors will agree to doing a test patch behind your ear, you can try it. Anyway I think I healed well because I really avoided the sun and makeup completely for 7 days. I just remained indoors and took a lot of water, vitamins, fruits, and rested a great deal. The pain is also bearable, as long as the doctor gives you numbing cream during the treatment. After that, just stay in a cold room and you will be pretty comfortable. On the night of treatment, it stung a bit when I washed my face before bed. Day 2 onwards, there was no pain, just a rough skin texture from the laser damage. I started peeling on the 4-5 day by little small dots. I think the key is to find a doctor you trust and who understands your concerns. I'm happy I did. Don't be afraid to try especially if scars have been affecting your life and confidence!!! |
| Recommended | Yes |
| Price paid | $400.00 |
| Acne severity | light |
Jake from Los Angeles
September 13, 2011
| Pros | Looks like it might of helped for one larger boxscar |
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| Cons | -Can still see lines of demarcation -Still patches of red skin -Few Red Lines that weren't there before -Left cheek still tingles |
| Bottom line | Fractional Erbium Laser: I'm not going to write a review bashing or blaming lasers like a lot of people on here have done. It's my own fault for not taking care of my acne before it caused damage to my skin. However, I will say that I haven't seen too much improvement. I underwent a free trial on a new prototype laser and was very optimistic since my doctor seemed very high on it. I'm suppose to have another free treatment shortly but I'm going to pass. I heard that Co2 lasers are the only ones that will give improvement to scars but this was suppose to penetrate as deep while being safer. I took about a million before and after pictures and I'm not quite sure if the laser caused any new damage, I am positive though that it didn't help and I do regret receiving treatment. I definitely have blotches of red patches that were not there before. So I don't think I would fare too well with a Co2 laser like Fraxel Repair. I just would advise anyone to do research and be 100% sure this or any procedure is what they truly want. I scoured the internet non stop for about two weeks but did feel rushed into it since it was free. I still do trust my doctor and the practice since they are very kind and only want to help. I just haven't seen the benefits. Who knows, I was told collagen production takes awhile and it would take 3 months to see it's full effect. Just hoping that one day they will perfect stem cells or some treatment so we can all fix our damaged skin. Good luck to anyone who undergoes any treatment and sorry about the lengthy review. |
| Recommended | No |
| Acne severity | moderate |
eeddaka from Toronto, Ontario
September 11, 2011
| Pros | none |
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| Cons | fat loss orange peel skin widened pores more scars random indentations in skin permanent redness sensitivity to the light severe dryness hyperpigmentation inflammation aging of the skin (wrinkles, lines) |
| Bottom line | I, too, became a sucker. I had read the negative reviews and was worried about this procedure but I trusted the dermatologist when she said "how can you believe people on the internet more than me, a board certified doctor?" Well, what I should've realized was that, wherever there is money involved, you have to be suspicious. The people writing the bad reviews online are brave enough to share their stories and caring enough to want to warn others of the risks that doctors will not tell you. After this, I can never trust any doctor again because the truth is, their clinics and practices have become money-making machines and they don't really care about their patients anymore. Anyways, I had one treatment of CO2 fractional laser over 21 months ago and the damage is still surfacing more and more. My skin looked ok for the first 2-3 months but that's when the redness and hyperpigmentation showed up and never went away. Then the fat loss (this may not seem like a big deal but it is, trust me, I took the fat in my face for granted. Losing it has altered the structure of my face so that I don't even recognize the person I see in the mirror anymore). It is severely depressing to lose your face. I know this sounds outrageous, but others out there who had this procedure can attest to what I'm talking about. The skin texture has become dry, leathery and has so many shallow pits in it, it resembles the skin of an orange. To get a good idea of what your skin will look like, long term, go find an orange and consider whether you'd like that as your skin. Also, my skin's become so sensitive, I can't go outside without a hat, staying in the shade and SPF 70 sunscreen. Also, being only 25, but with the laser induced wrinkles and lines, I look like I'm at least 40. My 60 year old mother and father have better skin than I do. The bottom line is, don't put any kind of lasers to your face. No matter the condition of |
| Recommended | No |
| Price paid | $800.00 |
| Acne severity | light |
Minnesotan from Fraxel-Minneapolis, Co2 Chicag
June 11, 2011
| Pros | Co2 maybe shallowed some of my deeper scars, but sooo many more cons than pros, including more scars. Fraxel none |
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| Cons | I have had both fraxel restore (4 at $900 each) and traditional co2 resurfacing ($3,200)and both only made me hate my face more. Fraxel didn't work at all enlarged pores made scars widen caused fat atrophy caused permanent redness around nose and smile lines Co2 long and gross down time hyper and hypo pigmentation caused lots of little 'nick' scars and ridges in skin further fat atrophy further enlarged pores caused burn like appearance and tex |
| Bottom line | I really hate lasers. They ruin your skin in so many ways, are too expensive, and don't work, but doctors love to push them on people because they make so much money. The only type of person I would ever even think to suggest this procedure to was someone with really, really bad scarring all over their face. Like moon crater bad where all the side effects might be worth the reduction of scars. And then I would only suggest the stronger lasers (yag, traditional Co2) with a very experienced doc that can show you pics of THEIR work. But again I would only maybe suggest this procedure in the worst of worst acne scarring. I would never suggest fraxel to anyone though. It doesn't work, cost tons, and as much as they say there is no risk there are side effects. I had quite a lot of moderate and mild scarring scattered all over my face and a couple of deep scars. So, from what the doctors said these seemed like the best options because there were so many scars to treat and few of them could have been treated with subsition/punch graph or similar methods. I was so wrong to listen to them. I wasted so much money and they ruined my face. I have lost so much fat in my face now and the texture is so uneven I won't even wear makeup because it looks horrible on my skin and makeup was the only thing that use to give me confidence by hiding my scars. Because of the fat lose I am already thinking of a face lift and I'm only 27. Not that my skin is really saggy, but it is lose and by no means taught, causing scars to be more noticeable, lines and the appearance of my face to be different. Please don't use lasers!! On a positive note, I started using derma rollers and now stamps. The stamps really, really work!! You just have to be a little patient. I do it once a month. Stamp (1.8mm) all areas 15-20 times and start seeing results in a week. My scars have improved so much in the last few months. I just wish I had discovered this before my face was wrecked b |
| Recommended | No |
| Price paid | $6,000.00 |
Crystalxo101 from Florida
May 27, 2011
| Pros | sadly none |
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| Cons | oozing after crusting downtime of a week scabbing left with more scars redness for about a month |
| Bottom line | I am begging you with all of my heart not to get this treatment. I didn't want to get laser at first but my mother insisted and insisted and so i gave in. It was painful and very disgusting afterwards.I mean VERY disgusting. After all the peeling went away i was very pink and puffed .I had some hope since some scars went away, however after the swelling and the redness left i saw i had MORE scars. It is very painful to go throughout the day knowing i have so many more scars. (and i really do have a LOT more) Im really begging you not to get this treatment. I cry everything i have to look in the mirror now, with and without make-up. |
| Recommended | No |
| Price paid | $500.00 |
| Acne severity | moderately severe |
ryu87 from Milan, Italy
May 2, 2011
| Pros | none |
|---|---|
| Cons | Months of redness My skin has become VERY SENSITIVE Acne is back |
| Bottom line | This is my experience with fractional co2 laser (power 30W), I had the treatment in October (4 days with crusting 3 of peeling then redness), now it's May, and my skin is not completely healed... it's still a pink but the worst thing is that my skin has become VERY VERY sensitive, I can't use BP anymore cause my face literally burn (and my acne is coming back!! In the past I could put almost everything on it without any problem and now it's the opposite, I wouldn't do it again... maybe my scars (boxcar) are a little bit improved (5-10%??) but the price to pay is too high, 3-4 months of redness (maybe my treatment was to harsh but the doc told me 5-7 days of redness NOT months!!!!) I DO NOT recommend this laser at ALL!! |
| Recommended | No |
| Price paid | $500.00 |
| Acne severity | moderately severe |
gno101975 from England
April 19, 2011
| Pros | None. |
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| Cons | Can be costly, plus it may not work (see bottom line). |
| Bottom line | I recently had laser treatment, but I'm not sure which laser I had. I had 2 passes done on my face (I've had scars for 14 years). It hasn't worked, I go back to the clinic in June. From reading this website, the CO2 laser is the best of the 3 lasers available. I've also read that 2-3 passes are needed. |
| Recommended | No |
| Acne severity | moderately severe |
JSM555 from Canada
March 18, 2011
| Pros | NONE |
|---|---|
| Cons | Latent damage 1-3yrs later...scarring, DNA damage, lines, cracks, etc, etc, etc |
| Bottom line | Costly and painful. Caused atrophic, rolling, ice pick, boxcar scars and hypertrophic scarring, damage down to the muscle, accelerated aging, discoloration, dna damage...I could go on and on and on. All lasers are pure radiation to the skin and deeper in my personal experience. Want to look disfigured, go for a laser. Don't want to look disfigured, don't go for laser treatments. Find something else, facials, natural lotions, vitamins...anything else. |
| Recommended | No |
Total results: 333 Viewing page: 1 of 34
