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Facial redness due to rosacea and sun damage is something that we come across in our practice multiple times each day. Many of our patients are distressed by their condition, feeling that they have to wear makeup in order to hide the facial redness or broken capillaries (telangiectasia). A safe and effective treatment of facial redness is therefore vital to enable us to help our patients.
It has been three months since we took delivery of our Cutera Excel V vascular laser and in a nutshell, we love this machine. We will share with you our experience and how it compares with the previous lasers that we used for vascular treatment, the Cutera Xeo (vascular laser) and Limelight (intense pulse light or IPL).
The Excel V is a dual wavelength laser system consisting of 532nm and 1064nm. Both lasers have a high affinity for haemoglobin, the red colour in blood vessels. The 532nm is most effective on smaller superficial vessels, whereas 1064nm can penetrate deeper into the dermis and can therefore be used to treat vessels that are situated more deeply, as well as thicker vascular lesions.
Our old Xeo system consisted of a single 1064nm and an intense pulse light (IPL). IPL is actually not a laser, but a broadband, non-coherent light source comprising a range of wavelengths, meaning that the energy is less targeted.
Cutera has made numerous improvements between the models and virtually every aspect of the Xeo vascular laser has been improved in making the Excel V platform.
Dual wavelength lasers (532nm and 1064nm) are better than one (1064nm), as it allows smaller and more superficial vessels to be treated more effectively. The dual wavelength now allows over 20 indications to be treated on patients irrespective of their skin type. It is also far superior to the older IPL technology in terms of safety and efficacy.
One aspect of a laser machine that is vital to patient safety is the method of epidermal cooling. Cooling ensures that the epidermis is protected from heat damage from laser energy. The Excel V uses a Sapphire crystal to cool the area in real time while it is being treated and allowing the target to be visualised at the same time. The amount of cooling can be specified to allow different colour targets to be treated more effectively. This is a fantastic way to ensure patient safety.
Both our old and new machines come with Laser Genesis. Needless to say, numerous improvements have been made to ensure that the new Laser Genesis is a joy to use. We will tell you about the new Laser Genesis in a future article.
One thing that we must mention in relation to the treatment of facial redness is the importance of cosmeceutical home care. There is no known cure for the causes of facial redness, it is likely to recur. It is therefore imperative to maintain the effect of your laser treatment by using cosmeceutical skin care. We have found the Universkin physician-only range to be our go-to product to manage facial redness.
In summary, we believe we have a winning combination of state-of-the-art Cutera Excel V laser system, as well as Universkin cosmeceutical skin care, that will allow us to achieve excellent results safely and effectively for your facial redness, whether it is caused by rosacea or sun damage.