Surrey laser peel (Vegas Peel) for skin rejuvenation, complexion revival, wrinkle treatments and more

Laser peels give patients a deep exfoliation that speeds up their body’s natural skin shedding. This reveals newer skin, sooner, for a better, more uniform ‘glow.’ At the same time, it doesn’t damage the inner layers of the dermis, which are more sensitive, and would otherwise require longer healing time.

Laser peels can be customized to a patient’s needs. Settings on the machines can go lower or higher, to suit the sensitivity and tone of the skin being treated. Peels can also be mixed with other treatments, in a series of sessions, to achieve the ultimate look you want.

Downtime after a laser peel can be as short as a few days, with only a bit of redness and flakiness. Most people heal completely within a week, making it the perfect pre-wedding or staycation beauty treatment.

In one treatment, a laser peel can target multiple skin conditions, including fine lines and wrinkles, a dull complexion, acne scars and brown spots, plus sun damage.

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As mentioned above, the term “laser peel” can refer to total skin resurfacing, where the top layer of skin is intentionally damaged, in order to stimulate new collagen growth. This results in soft, smooth and ‘fresh’ skin. That type of so-called laser peel can require a lot of planning (due to the healing time involved). It can also involve the use of stronger settings, on stronger lasers (such as CO2 or Fraxel lasers), to achieve more dramatic, yet quicker, results.

However, when we refer to the Vegas Laser Peel at our Surrey beauty clinic, we’re talking about a lower setting, for a more mild photofacial treatment.

To that end, our milder, Surrey laser peel service (i.e. the Vegas Peel) can be a good option for those who want:

• Mild wrinkle reduction
• Skin tightening, smoothing and softening
• Acne scar reduction
• Brown spot treatments
• A complexion boost (for a dull complexion or pigmentation treatment)
• Sun damage healing

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Technically, many machines at our beauty clinic can do the job of a mild skin rejuvenation treatment. However, our laser peels generally use the Erbium YAG (Er:YAG) laser, on a very low setting. In any case, the great thing about laser peels is that, with some machines, the settings can be customized to suit your sensitivity level, and the depth of penetration you’re looking for.

The idea behind the technology is to use laser energy to ‘blast’ away a superficial layer of skin cells. These reside at the top of the dermis. This is usually where acne scars, brown spots and wrinkles make their home. It is skin that is going to fall off anyway, in due time. With a laser peel, the body’s skin shedding process is artificially accelerated. This then reveals the fresh, new skin cells underneath.

However, while the top layer of skin is being removed, it also slightly damages your skin, which is intentional. This kick-starts your body’s natural healing response, to produce more collagen. Collagen production replaces those dead, removed skin cells with new ones. As a result, you end up with smoother, younger-looking skin.

If you’ve ever had a chemical peel, this treatment would be less intense than that. You wouldn’t experience as much flaking afterwards. However, we do say that our Vegas Peel is more like 30 microdermabrasions, all in one sitting. So, it is stronger than a typical facial (even stronger than a HydraFacial™). You will have some redness and flaking, and generally, about 3 to 7 days of healing time (depending on how your skin responds to the treatment).

During a treatment session, you’ll be lying down. Your face will be cleansed (the face is the typical area of skin we treat with laser peels). A laser handpiece will pass over your skin in increments, delivering a pulse of light energy about every second or so. The entire procedure, when done on the face, takes roughly 35 minutes.

Mild laser peels like the Vegas Peel are not too painful, but also not completely painless. No anaesthetic is required. So, that should give you an idea of how well most people tolerate it. Each pulse of energy can feel like a small pinch, or a rubber band being snapped on your skin.

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Depending on your needs, our Surrey laser peels can be done once, or in a series of 3 to 4 treatments. For those who want to keep up their anti-aging routine, or their complexion ‘glow,’ we’d say that a laser peel every 3 to 4 months is advisable.

However, do remember that laser peels can be customized to your needs. So, if you have sensitive skin, and as a result, require a lower setting for your treatment, it may take more than one session to achieve the results you’re looking for. On the other hand, if you have dark, deep acne scars, we may need to raise the settings, and still do more than one session, to target your pigments, and new scars that form over time.

Each case will be different, and a consultation is the best way to determine the skin treatment that’s right for you. We strongly recommend booking a time to come in for a personalized assessment. We’ll be able to answer any questions you have, as well as offer you our best advice on treatments we think will work on you.

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Again, this can depend on the case that is being treated, and the settings used to target your skin condition. It can also depend on how your body reacts to treatment, which can be different for everyone. Generally, however, we’ve noticed healing time for this application can last up to 7 days (though sometimes it’s only a few days). This time period can involve some redness and flaking of the treatment area.

You must wear a high SPF, broad spectrum sunscreen with UVB and UVB protection after this service (preferably one that won’t clog pores). Whether or not it is sunny outside, this requirement is to protect the very vulnerable, newly-exposed layers of skin after the treatment. We carry excellent product options at our clinic, should you wish to buy them from us. We will apply complementary sunscreen to the treatment area after your session, before you leave our clinic.

We will ask you not to take any over-the-counter painkillers, nor drink alcohol before and after your treatment, as these can affect your healing time. We may also ask you to forgo some medications, especially topical prescription creams, for this treatment, until your face heals fully. Full instructions will be given at your initial consultation with us.

The ablation of skin of any kind can require regimented cleaning, as well as aftercare routines, to promote healing and avoid infection. We’ll advise you on hydrating creams and products we believe will help stimulate the effects of a laser peel treatment, too.

Side effects are not huge, but not totally unheard of, either. Remember, this is a low setting we’d be using for a laser service like this. So the risks are low as well. That said, lasers can trigger cold sores, if you have the virus (though antiviral medication can help with this). They can also leave you feeling itchy, red and swollen for a short time afterwards. Any prolonged symptoms should be reported to us (such as, after a week or so).

Extremely rare cases of laser peels can cause scarring and pigmentation. Though, if this does happen, we’ll be there to walk you through the next steps, to fix these issues as best as we can. We can’t stress enough, however, that situations like this are very rare. To avoid them, we ask for your entire health history before beginning a treatment on you (since some skin types are more prone to side effects than others).

It will be important to reveal your entire health history to us during your initial consultation at our clinic. This includes past procedures you’ve had done, known allergies and any medications you take – even if you might think they are unrelated to your treatment.

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Laser peels start at around $375 per treatment. The exact price to target your skin condition will depend on the energy levels we need to use, as well as the number of treatments, or combination of treatments we’ll recommend.

We encourage you to come in for a consultation to learn more about your options, as well as to answer questions about cost, frequency of sessions, and more. This is also how we’ll be able to assess your skin (using our special cameras, too), and find out more about your needs and health history.

Laser peels are considered a cosmetic service, and are not covered by MSP. We do not know of any private insurance companies that will cover a beauty service like this one. However, we encourage you to ask your provider anyway, just to make sure.