Laser Surgery
All You Need to Know about Laser Surgery including different procedures, risks, costs, and recovery.
Laser surgery for men is good for treating fine wrinkles around the eyes and mouth as well as for the treatment of acne scars and blemishes. The procedure involves firing a low-power laser onto the affected area; a process that has the effect of removing the top layer of skin to improve the overall texture. Laser surgery can also be used on other parts of the body for hair removal, while laser eye surgery (LASIK surgery) is a different process entirely and is for those with defective sight where the cornea is reshaped by laser light.
Laser surgery works by blowing off the top layers of damaged and wrinkled skin to ultimately reveal younger, fresher-looking skin underneath. There are a variety of lasers on the market that surgeons use, with CO2 lasers being the best but also the most expensive. These lasers are the most aggressive type and have the longest recovery time, yet are also the most effective. You would need to allow two weeks before you could go out and about after having CO2 laser surgery for men. Erbium lasers are less intrusive but give slower results, although treatment is cheaper and you can return to work faster. You may need more than one treatment with this type of laser, however. The cost of laser treatment is about $4,000 for a CO2 laser full facial, and $3,000 with an erbium laser.
Laugh lines around the mouth, frown creases on the forehead, and crows feet on the eyes are the main treatment areas with laser surgery. This procedure can also be used to soften the skin in other areas of the face, as well as help diminish acne scars and surgical scars, and to help remove blemishes, freckles and age spots. Laser surgery for men can also be used to treat facial redness, loose skin, and small blood blisters on the nose and cheeks. Many people who have facelifts also opt for laser surgery to smooth out fine lines and make it all blend in more naturally.
The procedure can take anywhere from a few seconds to a few hours and is totally dependent on how much needs to be done and what type of condition to be treated. Subsequent sessions may also be needed. A local anesthetic is used to numb the slight stinging, while a general anesthetic may be employed for those having inclusive treatments, like facelifts. The recovery period after having laser surgery depends greatly on the treatment, but patients can generally be up and about in no time and may be back at work within a week or so. CO2 laser treatment requires a longer recovery time and the typical redness will remain longer, too.
The main side effects of laser surgery for men are the redness and light stinging that will happen for a time. The red eventually turns to pink after a few weeks and the normal face color should return within one to three months. There may also be some swelling as well as an overall lightening or darkening in skin pigmentation. Some people do not take well to laser treatment and end up with painful rashes, so having just the one session in an inconspicuous area first as a tester is the best bet.
