Congratulations on your upcoming CoolPeel treatment! CO2 lasers are the gold standard in treating wrinkles, age spots, acne scars, and other blemishes as well as tighten skin and balance tone.
Damaged skin tissue is removed, or ablated, stimulating new collagen production and heat energy is delivered to tighten the skin. Sounds great, but CO2 treatments are often accompanied by considerable downtime and risk while damaged skin heals. While many advances have been made to improve the side effects of CO2 treatments, ONLY your CoolPeel treatment will deliver a fractional ablative treatment without the typical downtime. There is minimal risk of hyperpigmentation, demarcation or induced infection and below is what you can expect.
The effectiveness of this treatment is highly dependent on patient cooperation. There are many things a patient can do to increase the safety of effectiveness of their treatment, as follows:
Before treatment:
- Avoid any prolonged exposure to the sun for 4 weeks prior to your treatment. If you must be in the sun briefly, use a zinc oxide sunscreen of at least SPF 30+.
- Avoiding taking anticoagulants for 10 days before treatment, if medical condition allows. Consult with your physician.
- Discontinue any irritant topical agents for 2-3 days prior to treatment. Topical retinoid therapy and chemical exfoliants should be discontinued 3-5 days prior to treatment. Bleaching products should be discontinued 2 days prior to treatment.
- Patients with darker skin types are recommended to apply topical treatment that inhibits melanin production for 4 weeks prior to treatment. Please discuss with your provider if applicable.
- Please notify your provider if you have a history of herpes simplex disorder (cold sores), as you will need to be prescribed prophylactic medication prior to your treatment.
- Hydrate. We recommend that for seven days pre-treatment, you moisturize skin in the morning and evening, and drink at least 8 glasses of water per day to completely hydrate your skin and optimize treatment results.
- Arrive for treatment with clean skin. There should be no lotion, make-up, perfume, powder, bath/shower oil present on the skin in the area to be treated.
- Please anticipate the need to avoid face coverings for 24 hours following the procedure.
In order to maximize safety of your treatment, you will be asked to sign a consent form indicating that all of the pre-treatment recommendations have been followed and post-treatment recommendations have been reviewed.
One of the main benefits of a CoolPeel, is that there is minimal downtime. You should expect to be a little red, as if you have a sunburn, for a day, or two, but nothing should prevent you from returning to your normal daily activities. Your skin may feel dry and scaly as it heals so it is important to keep the skin hydrated.
After Treatment:
- Patient should feel a warm / sunburn sensation for about an hour post treatment. Skin should feel rough like sandpaper for 3-4 days post treatment.
- Average duration of redness is expected to be about 24-48 hours for Cool Peel, but may be longer for Tetra treatments.
- A thin layer of emollient should be used on the treated area. Continue to keep the area hydrated with the emollient. Do not let the skin dry out. Alastin Soothe & Recovery Balm is available for purchase in our office.
- Avoid touching or cleaning the area for 24 hours. A gentle cleanser may be resumed on the morning after your treatment.
- Sleep with a clean pillow case and head slightly elevated.
- A cool misting spray or clean ice packs may be used for comfort, if needed.
- Avoid using makeup for at least 24-48 hours after a Cool Peel treatment. Tetra treatments may require 5-7 days without makeup. Mineral makeup is preferred to ensure you maintain clear pores and allow your skin to breathe and heal properly over time.
- Avoid facial coverings/mask use until skin does not appear compromised, red, or scaly.
- Avoid sun exposure, intense workouts and sweating until redness has completely resolved.
- CoolPeel should be repeated on a monthly basis until desired results are achieved. Makeup Application
