Skin Resurfacing

What makes these treatments so popular?

There are a lot of benefits of Radio F requency skin treatments:

• Their ability to not just change the surface of the skin, but its underlying support structures
• Quick and simple appointments that are usually finished in under an hour
• Minimal recovery time
• Natural-looking and gradual changes in the skin, since collagen and elastin renewal occurs over time
•Treatments can be used almost anywhere on the body to treat sagging skin, acne scars, sun damage and other common skin concerns

At Skin Appeal we offer Nanofractional Radio Frequency (RF) skin resurfacing treatments using Venus VIVA and Inmode Fractora.

Your treatment provider will choose the device best for your skin care goals.

What Are The Benefits Of Choosing This Treatment?

Benefits of the treatment include:

• Minimally invasive with minimal downtime: return to your normal activities within a day or two. It achieves results without the prolonged redness or pigmentation concerns commonly seen with other procedures
• Ideal for the treatment of moderate to severe wrinkles
• Improves skin complexion, skin laxity, and reduces skin irregularities including acne scars.
• Safe for use even on delicate skin such as eyelids and neck
• It can be used on all skin types with minimal risk of post-inflammatory hyperpigmentation. Because it uses radiofrequency energy it is safer than traditional lasers on darker skin tones.
• Fully customizable with multiple penetration depths and density configurations

How Should I Prepare My Skin Before Treatment?

Before undergoing treatment with nanofractional RF, be diligent about sun protection and optimise your skin care routine. Avoid products with active ingredients such as vitamin A, retinol and AHA for at least 3 days before your procedure.

If you are thinking of having both dermal fillers and radiofrequency treatment, we recommend RF treatment first for collagen stimulation. This may help reduce the amount of dermal filler required subsequently to achieve the same result.

What Can I Expect During Treatment With Nanofractional RF?

A local anaesthetic cream is applied 30 minutes before the procedure. When it has taken effect, your dermal clinician will move the handpiece across the treatment area in a stamping pattern. Most patients feel mild or no discomfort.

How Should I Care for My Skin After Treatment?

Following your treatment providers aftercare instructions is essential to protect your healing skin and maximise your results. Makeup and sunscreen can be applied 24 hours after treatment.

What Are the Side Effects?

The most common side effects associated with nanofractional RF are redness and swelling. These side effects peak within hours. Mild redness or swelling can last for one to four days, depending on the settings used during treatment, and can easily be camouflaged with makeup.

Fine pinpoint scabbing may develop but is generally not visible to others. A transient acne flare can occur. Rare side effects include infection and transient pigmentary changes. We can adjust the treatment intensity to ensure you are ready in time for any upcoming professional or social engagement.

Will I See Results Immediately? Are They Permanent?

The collagen remodelling process is not instantaneous. Since many of the benefits appear after this has taken place, it can take a number of months for the most significant results of your nanofractional RF treatment to show.

Some patients report seeing gradual, ongoing improvement for up to a year. The benefits of this treatment are long-lasting, but nanofractional RF cannot halt the effects of time, sun exposure and gravity. Follow-up sessions may be required to maintain your results.

How Many Treatments Will I Need?

This varies from patient to patient. The number will depend on your treatment objectives, the severity of your skin concerns and the area(s) being treated. We generally recommend three to six treatments scheduled four to six weeks apart. A yearly maintenance treatment is also advisable.

Who Is A Candidate?

This treatment is suitable for all patients who are not pregnant or breastfeeding. Fractora & Viva are cleared and safe to be used on ALL skin types including very light and darker skin tones so is an appropriate treatment choice for most patients.

What Areas On The Body Can Be Treated?

It is effective in treating the following areas: lower eyelid, upper eyelids, forehead, cheeks, neck, décolleté smile lines, and hands.

How Can I Prepare For A Treatment?

Please advise us prior to treatment if you have suffered in the past with cold sores on the skin or lips. This viral infection may be re-activated in these areas. You may be required to take an anti-viral medication such as Valtrex on the day of your treatment and for several days after your treatment.

How Is theTreatment Performed?

Before you begin the treatment, photos may be taken for later comparison, and consent will be reviewed and signed. The Aesthetician will cleanse your skin using chlorhexidine and a topical anesthetic cream will be applied prior to treatment. The radiofrequency energy is passed through a series of micro pins; this heats the skin and causes tiny pinprick holes that the body naturally repairs.

Is the Skin Treatment Painful?

Patients feel a sensation of warmth but no pain during the treatment. Body areas that have thinner skin, such as the jawline or forehead, tend to be more sensitive than others.

How Long Does Treatment Session Take?

Each session lasts 30 minutes to 2 hours.

Can A resurfacing Treatment Be Done The Same Day As A Facial Or Injectables Treatment?

No. Facials, Lasers, Botox, and Dermal Filler treatments cannot be done for 1 week before or 1 week after resurfacing treatments.

Can I Get A Treatment If I Am On Accutane?

No. Accutane must be stopped for 6 months prior to treatment

Can I Continue Using Retinol Prior To resurfacing?

It is recommended to stop any products containing retinol one week prior to treatment and can resume one week after.

When Can I Return To Normal Activities?

Overall, skin resurfacing will not require much downtime. The treated area cannot get wet for 24 hours. We recommend avoiding strenuous activities for the first 24 hours.

How Long After A resurfacingTreatment Can I Wear Makeup?

You can apply makeup after one to two days.

RF Micro Needling(Viva/Fractora) vs. Micro Needling(Skinpen): Which Is For Me?

If you want to rejuvenate your skin, you have a plethora of options to choose from that can remove scars and wrinkles, eliminate sun damage, or revive sluggish skin. Two of the most popular are SkinPen microneedling and Viva & Fractora nanofractional resurfacing with microneedles

What’s the Difference Between Skinpen Micro Needling and Viva & Fractora RF Micro Needling?

Skinpen Microneedling takes advantage of the body’s natural healing processes. A handheld mechanical device creates microscopic pinpoint wounds at predetermined depths.

These wounds are deep enough to trigger your body’s healing mechanisms but not so deep that they cause permanent damage. Your body responds to the wounds by producing new elastin and collagen, leaving your healed skin firmer and tighter than it was before.

Viva and Fractora uses microneedling with the addition of radio frequency technology which goes deep into your skin to further boost your body’s collagen and elastin production. Generally, these can treat more severe problems than skinpen microneedling in fewer treatments.

What Can Skinpen MicroNeedling Treat?

Skinpen Microneedling is an incredibly effective treatment for wrinkles and moderate scarring. With multiple treatments, it can also deal with more severe scarring. It can treat the following conditions:

• Acne scarring
• Trauma scarring
• wrinkles

What Can Viva & Fractora RF Microneedling Treat?

The Viva & Fractora resurfacing can treat everything that micro needling can but because of the radio frequencies it uses, it’s also effective at treating conditions such as:

• Sun damage
• Poor pigmentation
• Broken, visible veins
• Active acne

Which Treatment Should I Choose?

Determining which treatment is right for you depends on a number of factors, such as the type of problem you’re trying to fix, how serious the condition is and to some extent, your skin tone. YOUR TREATMENT PROVIDER WILL HELP DETERMINE THE BEST OPTION.

Skinpen Microneedling is excellent for acne scars and smoothing out fine wrinkles but may take six to eight treatments to achieve results with severe acne scarring.

Viva & Fractora RF can usually treat mild wrinkles and acne scarring in about three treatments. The radio frequencies it emits can also treat sun damage and visible veins.

Skinpen Microneedling has minimal recovery, and you should be able to resume normal activities the same day you receive treatment. Your skin will be red and inflamed for a day or two after treatment. It will also be more sensitive to the sun, so you should avoid direct sunlight as much as possible and use sunscreen with at least SPF 30 when you go outside. You should also avoid using skin-care products on the treatment area for 2-3 days.

Recovery from Viva and Fractora may be slightly more involved depending on the strength of the treatment. You should expect one to five days of mild swelling and for some, one to two weeks of residual swelling. You may also see a grid-like pattern on your skin in the treatment area that will disappear after 2-5 days. As with micro needling, you should avoid direct sunlight and wear SPF 30 for about two weeks.

HELPFUL HINTS

Don’t Over-Moisturize

Just as you don’t want to artificially accelerate the skin peeling process, you don’t want to slow it down, either. This means that you should not over-moisturize your skin. Using a gentle moisturizer such as Aquaphor or Vaseline once daily is adequate for most people. If you have very dry skin, you can moisturize twice daily.

Bathe Carefully

Make sure the cleanser you wash your face with is gentle. If you experience any irritation before treatment, you will definitely want to switch your facial soap. Bathe or shower with warm water and wash your face gently. Once you’re done, pat your face dry with a soft towel. Do not rub your skin dry aggressively.

Protect Your Skin From the Sun