Spots, Scars, and Stretch Marks: Lasers Can Treat Them All

An injury, rapid weight fluctuations, and excessive sun exposure all contribute to displeasing skin blemishes in the form of scars, stretch marks, and age spots. These irregularities may be bothersome obstacles to a clear, radiant complexion that you just don’t want to live with anymore.

Sure, there are things you can do to keep your skin healthy, like not smoking and staying hydrated, but they won’t remove these flaws. Lasers can treat them all.

Board-certified dermatologist Dr. Javier Zelaya and the entire Skinworks Dermatology team know exactly how to treat skin imperfections like stretch marks, scars, and spots. The most important thing is that Dr. Zelaya listens to what you want to achieve for your skin and develops a treatment plan from there.

Revolutionary laser technology solves many skin problems

Dr. Zelaya is enthusiastic about lasers because they’re true dermatological multitaskers. For example, intense pulsed light (IPL) treatments are an advancement that successfully minimizes or removes some of the most common problems our patients come to us to treat.

A handheld device delivers the laser’s energy, and you wear eye protection to ensure your eyes aren’t affected by the light. You might feel a mild sting during treatment, but that’s countered by a cooling gel applied to your skin before your treatment.

Laser treatments can:

• Measurably minimize the appearance of stretch marks
• Make scars less noticeable
• Address hyperpigmentation issues like age spots

When Dr. Zelaya works with you, his first line of defense is prevention, but he’s invested in offering a diverse menu of safe and proven treatments that fit your needs and budget. It’s rare to see a single treatment that can solve so many skin issues, but laser technology can.

How do lasers treat skin problems?

Laser treatments alleviate a variety of cosmetic imperfections by applying multiple wavelengths of diffused light. IPL goes through the top layer of your skin — the epidermis — straight through to your second dermal layer to treat problems.

When the proteins that hold your skin together — collagen and elastin — rupture due to the speedy and extreme skin stretching caused by rapid weight gain or loss, such as in pregnancy, stretch marks appear. If you’ve tried creams with no success, we’ve seen great results with IPL therapy.

IPL therapy offers similar results if you’re distressed by age spots or scars, too. Treatment for age spots shuts down excessive melanin production, but leaves your skin’s outer layer intact and undamaged. The treatment also works on the discoloration that accompanies scars.

Another treatment option we offer that specifically addresses acne scarring is V-Beam laser therapy. It employs a Pulsed Dye Laser to send concentrated but mild light pulses to your skin’s scarred areas. It minimizes and sometimes eliminates the blood vessels that make acne scars prominent. 

Laser therapy encourages both collagen and elastin growth, as well as new cell production. It typically takes a few weeks to see the remarkable results of these treatments, but it’s definitely worth the wait.

Laser therapy is innovative in its ease and safety

It’s clear that lasers treat a host of skin conditions successfully, but treatments offer other patient-focused advantages as well, like:

• Minimally invasive
• Few or no side effects
• No post-treatment downtime — except after V-Beam therapy, we don’t advise exercise for 24 hours
• Typically requires just a few sessions

The one thing you absolutely must do after any type of laser treatment is slather on the sunscreen. Protecting the treated area of your skin from the sun’s rays is critical to ensuring the quality and endurance of your results.

At Skinworks Dermatology, we strive to offer you a carefully constructed skincare plan that truly works with the rest of your busy life. Call us at one of our three convenient offices, or simply book an appointment online. You deserve to look your best, and we’ve got the tools and offer the support to make it happen.