Alison,
Thanks for your question about Fraxel laser. The Fraxel re:store and Fraxel re:pair are really two completely different treatments with the only thing in common is that they are both fractionated, which means that they lay down tiny spots of treatment surrounded by normal skin which speeds healing. The Fraxel re:store is an erbium laser that treats pigmentation, fine liines, wrinkles, some redness, acne scarring and more. It is a series of 4-6 laser treatments done at one month intervals. Each treatment has about 1-2 days of swelling and 4-5 days of a mild redness called erythema which can be covered with makeup immediately. So the social downtime with makeup is about 2 days. The results for pigmentation are great and wrinkle improvement and other concerns is mild to moderate. The Fraxel re:pair is a CO2, carbon dioxide, laser. It is a one time treatment, but has more downtime. The patient’s skin is a little weepy and crusty for 7-10 days and you are required to wear ointment on your skin for this time period. You cannot wear makeup to cover it so the social down-time is more like 7-10 days. It provides nice improvement for wrinkles and pigmentation as well as other skin concerns. So the real difference is the number of treatments and down-time. We would be happy to talk with you more about your specific concerns and answer any other questions you have.
