Are some lasers used in laser resurfacing considered best?
Answer:
There are nonablative and ablative resurfacing lasers. Different lasers are better for different goals and skin types. The best ablative resurfacing lasers are the CO2 (carbon dioxide) laser and the Erbium YAG laser. Ablative resurfacing lasers help improve wrinkles, acne scars, age spots, skin texture and tone. Recently, many lasers are fractionated, which reduces downtime and risk of the procedure. In our practice we will commonly utilize a fractionated CO2 laser in combination with the Erbium YAG for skin resurfacing. Non ablative lasers target the deeper skin layers and utilize energy to increase the collagen in the skin to improve texture, coloration, and tone. These lasers have minimal downtime, but usually require multiple sessions to achieve an optimal result. To find out what laser is best for your skin it would be important to evaluate you in person in one of greater Washington, DC offices located in Chevy Chase, Maryland or Herndon, Virginia.
-Dr. Jessica Kulak