Thank you for your question.
You state that 2 days prior, you underwent CO2 laser, microneedling and platelet-rich
plasma (PRP) injection.
You submitted several photos and you state that you have a lot of itching and a lot of
swelling and you want to get a sense of when this will resolve.
Well, I can give you some guidance on how we advise our patients when we do these types
of procedures in our practice.
A little bit of background, I’m a board certified cosmetic surgeon and fellowship
trained oculofacial plastic and reconstructive surgeon practicing in Manhattan and Long Island
for over 20 years.
Certainly, these types of issues are part of any type of resurfacing procedure with
the goal to restore new skin as well as doing something to stimulate collagen and the dermis
etc.
I’ve been using CO2 laser back in the mid 90s and prior to that, we were doing chemical
peels.
So these issues have a certain commonality and some consistency.
So understand that when you do something like CO2 laser, in our practice, we use fractional
CO2 laser consistently.
You are basically generating columns of entry into the skin with the intention of potentially
re-epithelializing or restoring fresh new skin on top that heals faster than an ablation
as well as stimulating the dermis to generate collagen and tighten.
Now, there will be itching and that is part of the healing process.
When you create all these defects in your skin, you will get itching.
The same applies to the microneedling process and chances are you had them done in different
areas but nonetheless, you’ll going to be having itching from that.
This type of question should really go to the doctor who performed the procedure.
And if you are feeling that this is a type of itching that is so uncomfortable that you
really, just beside yourself, that’s tends to be itching that can be associated with
some kind of allergy.
One of the things that people have to understand is that when you do any resurfacing procedure,
basically the protective barrier of the skin has been reduced and eliminated.
The aquaphor plays an important role in protecting the skin while the epithelium heals but that
being said, when the barriers are removed, you can be susceptible to various allergens
or different elements in the environment.
It could be even to something that you are applying besides the aquaphor.
So the counseling we give to our patients is to basically expect at least a week’s
work of employable or social downtime.
When you do something for face like this and that there will be redness that can persist
for a few weeks because of the dermal treatment, you should contact your doctor because with
the photos you submitted, it doesn’t look like a contact dermatitis which is one of
the first things I think about when patients call about itching.
But if it is some itching, some swelling then that is typically just part of the course
and can be expected.
My policy with patients is if you have questions, our doors are always open.
You come right in and you get evaluated.
Photos are not always ideal the way typically people take pictures with their phones.
They can get decent enough pictures but contact allergies, if you can catch them early, treat
them early as you can to avoid a lot of misery later on.
Contact dermatitis can be like for everyone to understand is like poison ivy.
So hopefully you will be able to reach out with your doctor and figure out that to do
before things progress further in a way that is undesirable.
Like I said, typically a little itching, a little swelling for doctors is normal for
a person who of course is experiencing this for the first time can be distressing or unsettling
because naturally a lot of times, people think that something has gone wrong or something
is going wrong so that’s why we have policy in our office to just call us, come in and
we will see what is going on.
So I hope that was helpful, I wish you the best of luck and thank you for your question!