One of the most effective strategies to reduce the prominence of stretch marks is to remove thin layers of scarred skin with a laser. The light from the laser interacts with the molecular bonds in the tissue, causing the tissue to disintegrate. This scarred tissue is replaced with new, healthy-looking skin tissue. The entire process is minimally invasive, rarely painful, and extremely effective. 

Length:  Patients often require as many as 10 treatments to completely remove stretch marks.

Results:  Laser stretch mark removal is highly effective in most cases. As with any other technique, success is dependent on the prevalence and age of the stretch marks in question – older and more serious stretch marks are more difficult to treat. Once laser stretch mark removal is complete, the treated area will heal quickly, and new layers of healthy skin will form.

In the most serious cases, even a series of laser treatments may only reduce the visibility of stretch marks rather than removing them completely. Each case is unique.

Procedure: 

The doctor will apply a pattern of tiny scanned pulses of laser energy to your skin with a controlled laser. The DOT Therapy laser precisely creates thousands of microscopic holes (DOT’s) in your skin, which induce immediate skin tightening and stimulate new collagen growth.  Unlike other laser resurfacing technologies, DOT Therapy leaves islands of healthy tissue surrounding the microscopic DOTs. This enables your skin to heal more rapidly and minimizes overall damage.

Anesthesia:  Topical

Patient Status: Office Visit

Recovery:  Patients typically recover quickly and comfortably.  Most patients heal from a treatment within a few days, but healing has been known to take as long as a few weeks in certain cases, particularly those requiring more extensive therapy.

Side Effects:  Immediately following laser stretch mark removal, the affected area will be red and tender. This is because layers of scarred skin have been removed and new skin is being grown. Occasionally blistering and other symptoms typical of a burn injury may be present, but these are temporary.