June 18, 2012 – Laser skin resurfacing is becoming a hot relatively new method of facial rejuvenation. The only problem is that some patients report mild to moderate discomfort in the form of burning, stinging or tingling during the procedure. But in the July issue of the Journal of the American Academy of Dermatology an article about the use of cold-air anesthesia details a new method of cooling down the side effects of fractionated CO2 laser skin resurfacing.
Ablative fractionated carbon-dioxide laser treatment is used to combat the effects of photoaging. According to the study, when dermatologists used just topical anesthesia on half of a patient’s face and topical anesthesia plus cold-air anesthesia on the other half of the face there was a pretty big difference in the pain rating from the patient.
Patients reported a pain rating of 7.47 (on a scale of zero to ten) on the side of the face that had only topical anesthesia before fractionated CO2 laser treatment. The side of the face that received topical anesthesia plus cold-air anesthesia got a 4.27 patient pain rating.
Laser skin resurfacing is normally a good method of facial rejuvenation. The only drawback has been the discomfort some patients experience with the treatment. So if you’re considering having this type of skin resurfacing done, speak with your dermatologist about the new cold-air anesthesia method.
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