Contact: Lisa Doty
847-956-9133, ldoty@asds.net 
3/31/2006

ROLLING MEADOWS, Ill. -- As laser skin surgery becomes increasingly popular for treating acne scarring and reversing damage from sun exposure, a new study reported in Dermatologic Surgery, the peer-review journal of the American Society for Dermatologic Surgery (ASDS), shows that six in ten patients undergoing minimally invasive or non-ablative laser procedures said they are satisfied with overall improvements from the treatment.

According to lead author and a Fellow of the ASDS, Ashish C. Bhatia, MD, non-ablative rejuvenation systems treat acne scars and sun damaged or photoaged skin by stimulating collagen production. As the laser penetrates the skin, it also emits a cooling spray which prevents damage to the skin.

“Non-ablative laser treatments are becoming increasingly popular with patients compared with invasive lasers because they significantly decrease risks for adverse events and downtime, produce gradual improvement instead of sudden effects, and have a lower incidence of scarring and pigmentary changes,” said Dr. Bhatia. By comparison, ablative procedures treat acne scars by removing the outer layers of skin to promote growth of new, smoother and more uniform layers. Possible adverse events include infection, bleeding, pigmentary changes and permanent scarring.

Dr. Bhatia noted that the acne scarring subjects reported higher satisfaction levels with the treatments than the photoaging subjects. This could be attributed to higher expectations of photoaging patients. “The results from this study show that patients first reported seeing changes in their skin between the third and fourth treatment,” he said. “This helps us set up realistic expectations as to when they will see results. With therapies that do not produce immediate and striking results, it is helpful to provide guidance to the patients as to when changes should be seen.

This patient satisfaction study follows research published in Dermatologic Surgery in August 2005 that showed patients treated with less invasive or non-ablative lasers had significant improvement of mild to severe acne scars with fewer side effects common with ablative procedures.

“Research conducted by dermasurgeons is validating the safety and efficacy of non-ablative laser systems for treating acne scars and photoaging,” said Gary D. Monheit, MD, president of the ASDS. “Although these procedures are becoming very popular with patients, expectations for their outcomes must be realistic.”

Founded in 1970, the American Society for Dermatologic Surgery is the largest specialty organization in the world exclusively representing dermasurgeons, board-certified physicians who are specifically trained to treat the health, function and appearance of the skin and soft tissue with both medically necessary and cosmetic procedures. For more information on medical or cosmetic skin procedures visit asds.net.