Skin Care

Answer: Having dry skin is not an absolute contraindication for chemical peels. What is more important is your skin type. For most fair skinned patients, chemical peel works very well for photo damaged (sun damaged) spots and fine lines even if your skin is dry.

Also, don't forget what Benjamin Franklin said - "An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure". Dr. Choe's 5 Rules for Healthy, Beautiful Skin will help keep your skin looking great as you age. Products such as Dr. Choe's Renuvare Skin Perfecting Serum make it easy to take care of your complexion.

Answer: Yes. Juvederm is injected into a skin layer called the dermis to help correct static facial lines such as smile limes and marionette lines. It is also very popular in lips for augmentation. It is safe for all skin types. Dr. Choe personally injects all of his patients. The procedure takes less than 10 minutes and has no down time.

Chemical peel is a general term used to describe a procedure where a medical professional applies a thin layer of (usually an acid) to the face/neck/chest. Chemical peels come in variety of different types and concentrations but can be divided into categories of superficial, medium, or deep peel. Most estheticians and nurses apply superficial type while medical doctor applies medium to deep peels. I believe chemical peels are a great choice for improving sun damaged spots but they do not work well for acne scars.  They just do not go down deep enough into the skin layer to make an appreciable difference. Dermabrasion or laser will work better for acne scars.

Despite daily use of sun screens, after a long summer your skin will have gone through some changes and visible signs of damage such as brown spots, broken capillaries and uneven skin tone and texture. There are few options to improve the look and feel of your skin. First, a non-surigcal skin care products (medical grade always) that decrease the melanin production and help to exfoliate your skin will help the look of your skin without any downtime. Second, light to deep chemical peels can be beneficial. Series of light peels such as glycolic acid to more potent 35% TCA (trichloric acid) peels can definitely remove most of your visible spots less broke capillaries. Lastly, LASER in combination with IPL (intense pulse light) can make a big difference. A laser such as the 2790nm laser only removes the outer layer of skin with only 4-5 days of down time is an excellent choice for many active and busy patients. More to follow next week on different types of peels and lasers.