Chemical Peels
Chemical peels and laser resurfacing ultimately should remove the top layer of skin, thus smoothing out fine wrinkles, decreasing discoloration, and pigmentation problems. Areas of wrinkly skin can also benefit from a peel or laser resurfacing procedure resulting in a shrink wrap type of effect.
The old skin that is peeled off within a few days leaves behind a newly rejuvenated healthier looking skin which has underwent collagen regeneration and rearrangement.
There are many types of acids used in chemical peeling including but not limited to trichloracetic acid (TCA) with various percentages, glycolic peels, phenol peels and jessners peel. These peels run the gamut of light lunchtime to very heavy deep peels. Depending on your skin type, skin thickness and coloring a tailored chemical peel could be fashioned to meet your skin rejuvenation needs. CO2 lasers could be used to resurface the skin much in the same was chemical peels would.
These procedures are very commonly done alone or in conjunction with other cosmetic surgical procedures. Areas to resurface are anywhere on the face and chest. The most common requests are the skin around the eyes and mouth which are the first to show signs of aging.
The procedure takes about one hour and is usually performed with sedation anesthesia, as well as local. A few days later the top layer of the peeled skin sloughs off, and the underlying skin must be lubricated with ointments or Vaseline.
At the end of a week, the skin is usually repaired (sometimes longer if a deeper penetrating peel is performed) and one should use sunblock regularly and avoid the sun when possible. Most patients may return to normal activities and work within 1-2 weeks.
