I had dermabrasion 1994 and lasers 2006, 2014. Dermabrasion requires a very skilled surgeon. Think about it: it is a rotating wire brush so you want a good doc who can vary depth in areas. I was put to sleep before procedure. You wake up with a face that looks like strawberry jello because of the bacitracin ointment to help with healing and minimize scaring. Healing takes time but any procedure going deep takes time. From what I remember: you look hideous and sitting up you have to hold a paper towel under your chin because you drip. That bloody goo also gets on your pillowcase. I remembered all I wanted to do was sleep. I did not want to look in the mirror. But then with cystic acne it was the same. Constant application with bacitracin until the wet scabbing finished. I think I could cover with makeup after 2 weeks because I have never had more than 2 weeks vacation. I think I did dermabrasion over the TG holidays to add days off to vacation time. When my caregiver brought me home. I scared her three year old - you will look that bad. Very visible difference in skin surface. Worth it if your scarring is deeper in some areas. Lasers - I went deep with anesthesia. You wake up with a very bad sunburn, your face feels tight and looks reddish brown. Prior to procedure docs want you to prep with a regimen to include retin A which helps skin cell turnover to help you heal faster after. My regimen was Obaji which also helped bleach skin discoloration. After procedure you use a prescribed lidocaine ointment (BioKool) to help with pain and a moisturizer which you gently put on really thick while the burned skin crusts under the moisturizer. After three days you can shower and use a water-vinegar mix to clean and disinfect from a spray bottle, then the moisturizer again. The gentle shower pressure helps remove dead skin. You will start itching. You will see what looks like whiteheads: LEAVE THEM ALONE. Keep your hands off your face unless you are applying something. Entire process before you can use makeup and sunscreen to cover redness takes about 10 days. I saw more of a difference with dermabrasion because not all areas are treated equally as with lasers. The laser used the second time was the grid type which initially leaves a grid of "dots" on your face. This fades in a few days. I think this is the Fraxel laser. The ideas is to pull up the depressed areas when the "injured" lasered dots cause increased collagen production and pull up depressed-scarred areas around it. Recommended surgeon in Dallas is George Toledo. One plastic surgeon said the docs who invest in those laser machines encourage their use because they paid for them. Dermabrasion requires a skilled doc and is much messier with the bloody goo. If you are going to go through with either procedure might as well go deep and use anesthesia make it worth the time off and the money. Good luck.

This is the most effective. Only one procedure and it erased all my scars. I had it at the age of 21 and was performed by a very good surgeon---had the most perfect complexion afterwards. The only negative is the downtime--it takes a month to recover. Otherwise, you can use concealer during the stage of hypo pigmentation and it works out well. Looks like you have slightly rosy cheeks then returns back to original color after 3-4 months. Now that I'm 30, because of aging I can see the scars again but for nine years I've had very good skin. So I'm looking at having a second dermabrasion soon. I'm skeptical about these lasers because you may not have the downtime but you need more frequent treatments and you end up spending more money and require more maintenance. I also think that you need to get a very experienced facial surgeon, one who has done not only aesthetic surgery but the ones who work in hospitals for facial reconstruction. I never had a complication whatsoever. I see online some horror stories but I think it's because of the surgeon, maybe wasn't that good. One of the best decisions that I did in my life.

This treatment was a life saver for me. I suffered from severe acne scars and was ashamed to show my face in public. I am latin and have olive skin and yes my face is lighter than my body but it looks like I tan my body and not my face, not an issue for me. This treatment is for people with severe acne or deep wrinkles. You might need several treatments to get the results you want. One thing that helped a lot was to put fresh aloe vera on my skin after the planning(crust removing) was over. I slept with a mask of aloe vera on my face for 2 months straight. It speeds healing. Also be very careful to avoid sinlight I learned that lesson after my first. Had to get a peel to even out skin. Only fresh aloe vera from the leaves of the plant will work. Also time consuming but worth the effort. If you follow instructions and take good care of your skin while it heals, you will be happy with the results.

dermabrasion is the gold standard of all skin resurfacing procedures...if done by a very skilled and experienced dermatologist or plastic surgeon.