Non-ablative Fractional Lasers
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Non-ablative lasers are less invasive but also less effective than ablative lasers. Non-ablative fractional lasers shine a focused beam of light at the...

Non-ablative lasers are less invasive but also less effective than ablative lasers. Non-ablative fractional lasers shine a focused beam of light at the skin in a fractional (dot-matrix) pattern, leaving the skin intact, while stimulating collagen and elastin production over time.

This procedure is normally repeated 4 times (3 or more) in 4-week intervals, and you should see gradual results with each session. And after your last session, your skin should continue to improve.

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23%
3
30.4%
2
17%
1
17.8%

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December 28, 2011

Pros:

+ The swelling makes you think your skin is perfect!
+ Helped with discoloration from prior breakouts

Cons:

- Little improvement in scarring
- I was not informed that one doesn't need to get Fraxel while still actively breaking out
- I was not informed there are different types of Fraxel lasers
- I was burned by tech.

I received Fraxel Re:store. Unfortunately, as stated, the doctor didn't tell me there are different types or forms of Fraxel. I wanted (and still WANT and NEED) Fraxel Re:pair because my scars are deep. I had so many Re:stores I lost count. The doctor was fleecing me while I put my trust in him. Although I was under the influence of Valium, hydrocodone, Xanax, and nerve blockers injected in my cheeks by the doctor, I do remember the instance his tech burned me...she burned my cheek/jaw and chin. I still bear the raised scar right under my jaw. The chin burn either didn't scar or you just can't really tell. The burn on my cheek near my hairline lost pigment but returned over the years...probably due to other treatments I've had done. I didn't realize the burn was as bad as it was, so when I saw him maybe two weeks later at my mother's urging, he was upset and knew it scarred, yet only offered me MORE Re:stores for free. And I, trusting, naive, and emotionally worn, took him up on it. I should have sued. I do NOT recommend Fraxel Re:store, but I AM seeking out a Fraxel Re:pair and I sincerely hope to see SERIOUS results with it.
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October 9, 2011

Pros:

At this stage, after 4 days, my skin has gotten smoother and has a healthy glow.

Cons:

I've read that the smoothness is due to swelling after Fraxel, thus it'll go away :(

This is my first Fraxel treatment and today is my fourth day. So far, so good. The procedure was definitely not painless, so make sure you apply the numbing cream ALL over your face all the way to the hairline and above your lips. My esthetician recommended that I apply another layer 30 minutes after I apply the first one, so I will follow her advice next time for sure! The pain is tolerable, like a bunch of rubber bands slapping your face, but hopefully the results will be worth it. Right after my procedure, my face looked like I got a sunburn. Nothing too bad, but I felt weird walking back to my car like that. I felt like everyone was staring at me, hehe. After the first day, my skin was no longer red and it just became a bit swollen and had a healthy glow. My friend who knows nothing about skin even commented on its glow. I have had acne for about 12 years, from age 12 to 24 (I'm 26 now). Toward the later years, I began having cystic acne that left scars all over my face. The only part that escaped scarring was my forehead. The worst parts of my face are my temples, which have all types of ice pick and rolling scars. I feel like I've been battling acne for all my life, so I really wanted to do something about it. About 5 years ago, I had 4 treatments of photodynamic therapy. I think THINK it helped my skin, but it also left my face a few shades darker than the rest of my body. The PDT helped my acne a little, but nothing drastic and I don't know if it was worth the $1000+. I'm hoping Fraxel will be worth the money though. I'll post pictures and I'll also post updates as the days go on and when I get my next treatment.
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September 15, 2011

Pros:

20% improvement

Cons:

costly don't believe the hype

I've done 3 fraxel treatements at the highest setting for my skin tone at a very good cosmetic derm office. I saw an immediate improvement on my skin after the first one, but that's because your face becomes swollen the week after so it appears that the scars are gone, but within a few weeks most of the scars came back. After the first time I saw a 20% improvement. I was excited and made an appoinment 6 weeks later. the second treatment did nothing. I made a third appointment, the third treatment also did nothing. Then I was told i should spreed 3 months between appointments. I was pissed about spending sooo much money and only seeing 20% improvement when i was told it would be more like 40-70 at the end so I tried juvedrem filler injections which did nothing, it was like throwing money away. i was very sad and expressed my feelings od dissatisfaction, it had been 6 months from the last time i did my third fraxel and 1 month since the juvederm. The spa offered me a fourth fraxel restore for free and i thought why not? If I see at least a another 20% improvement from this last one I'll spreed the fraxel restore treatments 6 months to year apart...I'll write back in 3 months letting you guys know what happens. If i see almost no improvement I will never do fraxel restore again cause its expensive as heck and it crushes your hopes. All that being said I'm still very happy that I got about a 20% to 25% improvement.
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August 4, 2011
The first time I got this, it didn't hurt as bad and it definately cleared up my skin. However, I was left with enlarged pores and tiny pock marks in my skin. But again, it looked better than when I had the acne scars. Fast forward a year later and my scars have returned with a vengeance. I have it done again, only this time it's more painful and I am left with tiny brown scratches on my face. I also have some hyperpigmentation and bruising near my chin. It's only been 3 days though, so I can't say if again my results are satisfactory, but they were the last time I got it done.
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May 5, 2011

Pros:

lightened my freckles, gave a more youthful appearance

Cons:

does not work on acne scarring

I am a 24 yr old white female. I had 4 sessions of fraxel restore at $500 each (gradual intensity). A few years ago I did accutane and it really cleared up my face, however, I still have rolling acne scars on my cheeks. I decided to try the fraxel restore. The pain was pretty bad but bearable and it only took the doctor about 15 minutes to complete the procedure (I only got my cheeks done). My cheeks are puffy and red and little to no discomfort is felt after the procedure. They stay red for about 4-5 days and in that time my skin looks and feels great!! However, a couple weeks later and it looks exactly the same. I am pretty frustrated. My doctor thinks I should have two more sessions but I am not convinced. Thinking about trying the fraxel repair but after reading some of the reviews on here, yikes!! Bottom Line: I would not recommend the fraxel restore for acne scarring
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March 4, 2011

Pros:

Red Mark left from past acne are reduced about 80%
Indented scars reduced about 40%
-This is after two FRAXEL RESTORE

Cons:

There is a week downtime where you can not go outside because your bright red, swollen and have brown scabs all over where the laser hit...you look like you have a skin eating disease or something! It's pretty awful.I wish it was a shorter downtime

I don't understand why people dont say it works... maybe you need to ask to put it on the highest setting. Well I had two done so far and she said by the third my red marks will be completely gone and then I will prolly need two more for my indented scars. They will never be back to normal but the improvement will be worth it. Maybe people with darker skin it won't work as well for cause they can't put it on too high of a setting?? I'm extremely pale & I have a ton of sun damage living in FL since 16 ...now 23. The cost is $850 full face & $450 just cheeks
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February 22, 2011

Pros:

None

Cons:

completely ineffective for Acne Scars

Hi Guys, I have a lot of scars on my face some are small, some deep. I can confidentially say I have almost every type of acne scar on my face and my scarring is severe. Also, I am a Indian from India and have Brown skin color. I read the post from anonymous from Washington here and felt a little confident about this treatment even though everyone else says only Repair would work for Acne Scars, but still I got FRAXEL RESTORE done. Anonymous from Washington is right in a way it looks like the treatment has worked on the fourth day but 2 weeks later your face looks exactly like it was before without any changes. I had taken note of the lightest scars on my face to see if this treatment made nay change on any of them and the answer is absolutely no. It made no changes to any part of my face. I have taken photos of my face using iPhone from different angles before and after the treatment and believe me there is no difference. I know they recommend 5 treatments but I was expecting to see some change even if it was 5% but sadly it is 0% change. I am not trying to discourage you but it is the truth this treatment is just not effective for Acne Scars. For those of you are Caucasians you are lucky that you can get FRAXEL REPAIR done which I have heard can be effective for Acne Scars but only after 4 Treatments yes even for REPAIR (ablative CO2) you can need 4 treatments. Bottom line this treatment is completely and absolutely a waste of money. The doctor only recommended I go with it to see how my skin reacts to it. Now that he knows it has healed well we may proceed with REPAIR. I wish you all good luck and hope only people who have had this particular treatment FRAXEL RESTORE post their comments here.
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October 18, 2010

Pros:

It works when done by a properly trained physician.

Cons:

proceduce takes some time (2 1/2 - 3 hrs), 2-3 days that you are not the most presentable. expensive.

You always see lots of negative reviews; but most people wont take the time to write a positive one. This works. I am in my late 30's and have suffered with severe acne since I was 13. When I was 23 I went through Accutane treatments. This brought my acne under control, but never got rid of it. In the last year i began having significant problems and needed to see the Dermatologist again. for the last 7 months i have been on a treatment of Minocin and Stievamycin. This has completely cleared up my skin and i have been "acne free" for 3-4 months. it was time to do something about the years of damage and my MD recommended Fraxel Re-Store. the procedure took approximately 2 1/2 hrs. it was 1 1/2 hrs for the numbing cream to work and then an hour for the procedure. I have heard several people compare the pain to being minor; like a shock. i will tell you it HURTS! perhaps this is because of the level of damage, but i had 8 passes over my entire face at a high level and by the end of it I was coming up off the chair with each pass. That being said, the results show. it has been 4 days and the swelling and redness are down significantly. i am able to go to work and it looks like i spent too much time out in the sun. It itches like crazy, but a good moisturizer helps with the itch. make sure moistureizer is hypo-allergenic and non comedogenic. I have read several others have problems with breaking out after the procedure. i also had a slight breakout of small whiteheads; but i think it was more to do with fluid under the dead top layer of skin. i have been using an antibiotic since the day of the procedure and have not had any more trouble with breakouts. I used pure all natural aloe all over my face constantly for the first two days. do not get an aloe that is green or blue or smells strong. you want a hypo-allergenic aloe with no colors or smell. natural aloe is very good for the skin and wont clog your por
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September 16, 2010

Pros:

I got one treatment done so far - I only got the cheeks instead of the whole face done and after the hour and half of numbing, the actual procedure was done within less than 5 minutes. I thought that was odd as the whole face takes abt 35-40 minutes but decided to wait a few days before questioning the doctor on it. Now about 10 days later, I don't see any improvement in my face and I wonder if it had anything to do with the time spent on the procedure.

Cons:

costly - needs to be repeated at least 3 times to see any improvement at all, as I am being told now.

While I want to go for the next 2 treatments, I am wondering if it'd be worth spending the add'l $1200+. The clinic, for some odd reason, won't let me talk to the doctor over the phone to get my questions answered. They wouldn't explain why the first procedure was barely 5 minutes long and insist on me making another appointment, so that makes me wonder.
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June 19, 2010

Pros:

I just got my first treatment this week for moderate acne scarring. Right now it's too soon to tell the results. I currently have little minute scabs all over my cheeks. As for the procedure, the pain was minor, if there was any. I expected the procedure to hurt, but I think it was my nerves that made me uneasy initially. It reminded me of small static electricity on my face, it was kinda cool. I am looking forward to when the scabs flake off and reveal a smoother skin.

Cons:

The numbing gel takes about 1 1/2 hours to 2 hours to be at its peak. I got the numbing about 2:30 pm and it was still slightly numb when I went to sleep around 9:30 that evening. There was some swelling. It took about 48 hours to completely go down. Then there are the scabs, but that's okay...because I know what's below the scabs when it all flakes off. I only got my cheeks done, and it costs about $300 dollars. Sounds expensive, but I've seen what some people paid, I got off easy.

Again...I am very optimistic. I am glad I went through the procedure, at this point. My face is starting to itch, so I know the healing process is well on its way. I will be sure to log back on in about a week to give an update.
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Finding a Doctor

The right dermatologist can make a big difference to your patient experience and the success of your acne treatment plan. Here are the steps to find a dermatologist who is a good fit:

  1. Use the search feature on the American Academy of Dermatology website to look for board-certified dermatologists in your area, and filter the search results for doctors with a special interest in treating acne.
  2. Read online patient reviews of any dermatologists you are considering and ask people you know whether they have any experience with these dermatologists.
  3. Do your research and go to your first appointment with questions prepared.
  4. Listen to what your gut feeling tells you once you see a dermatologist in person. If you are not completely comfortable, try a different dermatologist.
Find a Doctor Using The American Acacemy of Dermatology Website

Finding a Doctor

Only a select few plastic surgeons specialize in acne scar revision surgery. Be certain to find a provider who specializes in acne scar repair and who is passionate and experienced in this area.

Be sure to:

  • Look at before and after photos, the more the better, especially patients with similar scarring to your own.
  • Be realistic about results. Look for improvement, not a cure.

Questions to ask a potential scar revision specialist:

  • Are you board certified? Be certain that they are board certified.
  • How long have you been performing these procedures? Normally, the more experience the better, however, some younger surgeons may be more on top of the latest procedures.
  • Can I speak to some of your other patients? Ask for references for several patients who had similar scarring and speak to them about the process and their satisfaction with results.

Red flags:

  • Their story changes: As you discuss different treatment options, if they tend to change their mind easily, or agree with whatever you say, consider this a red flag. A confident, experienced surgeon will possess strong, unwavering opinions.
  • Your gut tells you "no": Trust your gut. If you just don't feel that the doctor is the right fit, trust that and move on. On the other hand, if you feel they are the perfect specialist for you, trust that feeling.
Find a Doctor Using the American Society of Plastic Surgeons Website