Laser Treatments

Several physicians at MHP are using state-of-the-art Cynosure lasers to treat patients with a variety of skin conditions including elimination of unwanted hair, removal of small veins, rejuvenation of sun damaged skin, treatment of acne and psoriasis, and removal of port wine stain birthmarks.

The physicians now treating patients with the lasers can be found at Lakeshore Family Medicine and Harborpointe Family Medicine. Using three different wavelength lasers, a variety of laser spot sizes and ability to change the pulse energy and duration, the laser energy is used in a very specific manner to treat various conditions and obtain excellent results. Physicians perform all of the procedures at the Aesthetic Laser Centers.

Acne Laser Treatment

Acne Vulgaris, sometimes called pimples or zits, is most common among the 12-25 year old population with about 85% of young people affected. Some older individuals also suffer from “adult acne.”

Most suffer from non-inflammatory acne and only experience blemishes occasionally. Others suffer from inflammatory acne with its lesions consisting of blood vessels, white blood cells, and other materials.

Those who are suffering from inflammatory acne may know of several treatment options. Options range from diet and regular washing of the affected areas, as well as “peeling agents” and topical and oral medications.

What sufferers may not be aware of is that advanced pulse dye laser technology is now being used as a supplement to these treatments. This technology has been successful at treating a wide variety of skin lesions in children and adults, and is now proving to be a powerful weapon in the never-ending battle against acne.

Pulse dye laser technology is particularly suited for the treatment of acne because it provides for the selective elimination of the small blood vessels that are associated with the inflammation "redness". With these vessels gone, the acne is more controlled.

The pulse dye laser is ideal for treating the redness associated with mild to moderate acne. Results are seen within three to four weeks. Typically, one to two treatments are recommended.

The treatment is not difficult. During the first visit, with your physician your condition will be assessed and previous treatments will be reviewed. Then you will have your first full treatment with re-treatments scheduled three to six weeks apart for the next three to four months. Each treatment will typically last about 15 to 20 minutes.

Most patients describe the treatment as a warm feeling and the most noticeable is the flash of light when the laser fires. The physician can further reduce any discomfort by cooling the area with an air-cooling device.

Your results should be comparable to other types of treatment. In addition:

Pulsed due laser treatments are less messy than the daily application of creams and lotions.
Unlike drugs, pulse dye laser treatments are non-systemic.

Pulse dye laser treatment is designed to gently target and reduce the redness associated with inflammatory acne. It will not aggravate an existing condition. However, as the underlying causes of your acne condition change; your acne could worsen independent of the laser treatment.

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Psoriasis Treatment

Psoriasis sufferer know how debilitating this disease can be. Now there is an effective alternative to topical creams, ultraviolet phototherapy, and oral drugs. This treatment will allow you quickly to resume a normal, active lifestyle.

Advanced pulse dye laser technology, successfully used to treat a wide variety of skin lesions in adults and children, now is proving to be a remarkably powerful weapon in the battle against psoriasis.

Pulse dye laser technology is particularly suited for the treatment of psoriasis because it provides for the selective elimination of small blood vessels that support the growth of the psoriatic plaque. With these vessels gone, the growth of the plaque will be significantly slower.

The pulse dye laser is ideal for treating stable, localized psoriatic plaques typical in mild to moderate psoriasis. Results are seen within three to four weeks. Typically, five to six monthly treatments are recommended.

The treatment is not difficult at all. In fact it's a simple two-step process.

Step One -- Your physician will prescribe a lotion, which you will apply on the areas to be treated for one week prior to treatment.

Step Two -- On the treatment day your physician will coat the designated areas with a special fluid to enhance their receptivity to the laser. Then the physician will treat the areas with the laser. A typical four-inch square area will require several minutes.

There is some minor discomfort associated with the treatment. Most patients describe the treatment as a series of rubber band snaps to the skin. Your physician can reduce or eliminate the discomfort by providing you with a topical anesthetic or by cooling the treated area with an air-cooling device.

While your results should be comparable to other types of treatment, pulse dye laser technology frees you from the potential undesirable side affects commonly associated with other treatments. For example:

Pulse dye laser treatment requires fewer treatments and less time than PUVA, or narrow band UVB, and will not cause aging or your normal skin, as is the case where the entire body is exposed to UV.
Pulse dye laser radiation is not UV, which is typically mentioned in conjunction with skin cancer.
Pulse dye laser treatments are less messy than the daily application of creams and lotions.
Unlike drugs, pulse dye laser treatments are non-systemic.

Pulse dye treatment uses light at a wavelength proven safe enough to use on newborns, not ultraviolet (UV) light, which has been associated with skin cancer and aging.

Since the treatment is specific to eliminating the plaque vasculature or vessels, some insurance companies may cover it as they do other vascular lesion conditions such as warts or port wine birthmarks. A lot may depend on whether your request is for medical or cosmetic purposes, or a combination.

Pulse dye lasers have been used since 1983 to treat port wine birthmarks and hemangiomas in infants as young as two days old. Today pulse dye lasers are routinely used in thousands of medical and cosmetic treatments in more than 80 countries. More than 100 peer-reviewed articles have been published on pulse dye laser treatments, including several on psoriasis treatment.

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Facial Rejuvenation

The most obvious signs of photodamage are coarsening of skin texture, wrinkling, irregular pigmentation, and enlarged blood vessels and pores. If you are over 30 years old and enjoy an active lifestyle your skin is probably showing signs of damage.

Skin rejuvenation is the visible improvement of sun-damaged skin through the use of pulse dye laser technology to remove enlarged blood vessels and irregular pigmentation, and stimulate the underlying collagen.

Lasers work by focusing a beam of light to a target in the skin such as enlarged blood vessels and irregular pigmentation. The enlarged vessels and irregularities are removed without scarring or damage to the treated or surrounding area and the underlying collagen is stimulated.

Today's advanced lasers are capable of treating a wide variety of skin types. The lasers can also eliminate red and brown blemishes, reduce minor wrinkles, reduce pore size, and generally tighten the skin's collagen.

Typically (4 to 6) treatments are required for full-face rejuvenation. The average treatment takes about 20 minutes. Results may become apparent after the first few treatments.

There is some minor discomfort (a stinging or a pinpricking sensation) associated with the treatment. In most cases no anesthesia is necessary. In some cases, the physician will cool your skin with a cold air system which alleviates discomfort.

Unlike CO2 lasers, dermabrasion or chemical peels that remove the outer skin and require significant healing time, the pulse dye laser gently penetrates the skin without damaging it and destroys the blood vessels and brown pigment that are the cause of the problem. It also tightens the collagen and minimizes large pores.

Results following treatment will vary but you should expect your skin to appear reddened. You can expect to return to your normal activities immediately with minimal precautions, such as sunscreen.

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Vascular Conditions

By using a beam of light, the Lakeshore Aesthetic Laser Centers treat a broad range of vascular conditions like facial spider veins, leg veins, and port wine birthmark stains by selectively treating the areas of concern. The laser light selectively targets and coagulates problem blood vessels while leaving the surrounding skin unharmed.

There is some minor discomfort associated with laser treatment. Most patients describe the sensation as a series of rubber band snaps to the skin. The physician often can reduce or eliminate this by cooling the treated area with an air-cooling device.

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Port Wine Birthmarks

These lesions are present at birth and usually occur on the face or neck. If untreated, Port Wine birthmarks can deepen in color and increase in size and depth with age. They can become raised, increasing their susceptibility to abrasion, ulceration, chronic infections and circulatory problems. Therefore, port wine birthmarks are best treated as early as possible. The lasers employed at the Lakeshore Aesthetic Laser Centers can be used to safely treat all sizes of Port Wine Birthmarks in infants and adults.

There are two phases to laser treatment. The first phase determines the proper laser energy to clear the lesion. This involves a test consisting of several laser pulses with differing energy density. At your next appointment, your physician will evaluate the best results to determine the proper energy setting for your skin type. The first of several treatment sessions will then begin.

Use of the pulsed-dye laser causes a discoloration and a bruise of the skin known as a pupura that lasts for about ten days. However, it is agreed throughout the medical community that when the pupura has faded, the pulsed-dye laser offers the most effective treatment available for port wine stains.

It is important to note that lasers do not always eliminate port wine birthmarks completely. In about 25% of patients, laser therapy will completely clear the lesion, while 75% will result in a dramatic improvement. For reasons that are not well understood, a small number of patients will not respond to laser treatment.

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Telangiectasia and Rosacea

Now there is new treatment for facial telangiectasia (spider veins) located on the forehead, cheeks, nose, and chin. These lesions have an excellent response to the new laser. The laser employs a large beam the size of a spot and significantly lowers energy levels, thus it has the dual benefit of making treatment faster while greatly reducing the purpuric response or post-treatment darkening of the tissue. Most importantly, the results are superior to other types of laser or conventional treatments.

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Leg Vein Procedures

Presence of superficial veins on the legs (telangiectasia) is a cosmetic problem that troubles millions of patients. Most physicians concur that laser therapy alone may not be sufficient to clear the veins in most cases. However, in conjunction with sclerotherapy, laser treatments can often be instrumental in clearing post-sclerotherapy capillary matting, and obtaining an excellent and lasting result.

Small, superficial red veins can be treated with the Smartepil laser over three treatments over monthly intervals, followed by a fourth treatment six months after the first.

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Laser Hair Removal

Men and women who want to rediscover the ease, beauty and confidence of hair-free skin can now have the attractive appearance they’ve always desired. The laser can remove unwanted hair from the legs, arms, back, shoulders, underarms, the upper lip, and the bikini area without damaging the surrounding skin.

The laser emits a gentle beam of energy that passes through the skin to the hair follicle. The energy is then transformed into heat, which damages the follicle. The scientific principle called Thermokinetic Selectivity (TKS) makes this method of hair removal particularly effective.

By using the principle of Thermokinetic Selectivity™, the laser "parameters" (guidelines for the effective use of the laser during treatment) were chosen to match the pulse width to the size and location of the hair follicle. The result is a safer, faster and more effective way to eliminate unwanted hair.

TKS makes it possible for laser energy to “select” only hair follicles, while sparing surrounding skin from damage. This brings the cosmetic results wanted with the clinical results needed.

Generally speaking, if you are concerned about unwanted hair, you are probably a candidate for laser hair removal. The most dramatic results will occur for those with light skin and dark hair. But this is another area in which the TKS™ lasing process has also made a difference.

The TKS™ lasing process now makes it possible for patients who may have not previously benefited from laser therapy - those with lighter hair and darker skin - to receive greater benefit from the procedure. Other factors can influence the treatment process, but are generally best evaluated and discussed in person.

In the past, dark skinned individuals, African Americans, Indians, or Pakistani’s were not candidates for laser hair removal. With the the Smartepil Yag laser, the Lakeshore Aesthetic Laser Centers can treat not only those individuals, but those who are darkly tanned. Results for these groups of people have been excellent.

Most patients describe the treatment as a series of slight pinpricks or rubber band snaps to the skin. The majority of patients tolerate this sensation without anesthetics. Within about 30 minutes of treatment, the area may become pink or red; this may last from a few hours to one day.

Each laser pulse treats about a half-inch area, which can contain ten or more hairs. The amount of time needed depends on the size of the area to be treated. The lip usually takes less than one minute; other areas, such as the leg, may take significantly longer.

Since hair grows in cycles, the laser only affects hair when it is in its early growth phase. In fact, the laser will disable follicles that are actively producing hair at the time of treatment. At any time, some hair follicles are dormant. Repeated sessions will be necessary to treat these follicles when they re-enter the growth phase.

“Most people are good candidates for laser procedures and with a simple consultation we are able to tell if the treatment will be successful,” said Dr. Banka.

“The treatments are virtually painless,”said Dr. Parra. “Patients tell us that they either feel nothing or it is like a pinprick. We cool the area with air during the treatment that eliminates most of the discomfort,” she added. Depending on the patient and the service that he or she is seeking, it may take up to 3 or 4 treatments to achieve results.

Most laser treatments (with the exception, sometimes of acne and psoriasis) are not covered by insurance because they are considered cosmetic. The Centers have payments plans available.

For more information or a free consultation the Centers can be reached by calling 1-888-78LASER or (888-785-2737).

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