46 JULY/AUGUST 2017
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Med Esthetics
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IMAGES
By Linda W. Lewis
The value of pretreatment skincare protocols for ablative laser procedures
has been debated for decades. In 1998, doctors at Massachusetts General Hospital
Dermatology Laser Center published the results of a survey and literature review
on the effect of pre- and postprocedure skincare protocols in laser skin resurfacing
(Dermatologic Surgery, February). The two main reasons postulated for treating the
skin before invasive procedures are faster healing and less risk of post-infl ammatory
hyperpigmentation (PIH). The researchers found widespread use among derma-
tologists and plastic surgeons—and evidence to support the use—of tretinoin prior
to laser treatment, noting that in split-back pig studies skin that was pretreated with
tretinoin 0.5% healed signifi cantly faster than the half that received no pretreatment.
Opinions vary on whether pre-treating the skin improves outcomes of ablative laser
procedures, but the literature does offer some guidance.
Prepping the Canvas