Laser Treatment Procedure Side Effects

Mostly patients do not have any significant side effects but have unique side effects on the skin. It is common for patients to experience slight pinkish or red skin on the skin surface area. However, this color will most likely fade within a few minutes to a few hours, and in rare cases, a few days. When cold packs are used, the skin will return to normal much more quickly.

The light that lasers produce is absorbed by the melanin in the skin and hair. This light energy is then converted to heat which is the element that disables the hair follicle from growing any more hairs. Because the skin and hair heats up, there is some sensation when performing laser treatments. Certain areas of the body tend to hurt more than others during the treatment. That is why topical anesthetic cream was suggested to reduce the pain on treatments. Some patients reported that it was a little like having a rubber band snapped against their skin.

Cryosurgery

Cryosurgery is the application of extreme cold to destroy abnormal or diseased tissue. Cryosurgery works by taking advantage of the destructive force of freezing temperatures on cells. At low temperatures, ice crystals form inside the cells, which can tear them apart. More damage occurs when blood vessels supplying the diseased tissue freeze.

Warts, moles, skin tags, solar keratosis, and small skin cancers are candidates for cryosurgical treatment. Several internal disorders are also treated with cryosurgery, including liver cancer, prostate cancer, lung cancer, oral cancers, cervical disorders and, more commonly in the past, hemorrhoids. Generally, all tumors that can be reached by the cryoprobes used during the operation. Although found to be effective, this method of treatment is only appropriate for use against localized disease, and solid tumors larger than 1 cm, not the tiny, diffuse metastases that often coincides with cancers.

Patients undergoing cryosurgery usually experience minor-to-moderate localized pain and redness, which can be alleviated by oral administration of an analgesic such as aspirin, ibuprofen or acetaminophen (paracetamol) and by topical anesthetic cream that can help to remedy the pain a patient suffers. Blisters may form, but these usually scab over and peel away within several days.

Topical Anesthetic Cream

LMX 4 topical anesthetic cream - a unique liposomal delivery system preparing the body to absorb 4% lidocaine. Effective in 20 – 30 minutes, it is marketed for “minor scrapes”, as the company does not explicitly market it for needle pain. However, multiple studies have confirmed it works as well as the leading topical anesthetic cream for venipuncture (IV) and dermatology procedure pain in less than half the time.

Has been used successfully for Botox injections, laser procedures, and other painful dermatologic procedures. For spinal taps , it improves success in infants. No studies have documented the time until it wears off, but it likely is between 50 and 90 minutes after placement. The liposomes that allow it to absorb so quickly also lead to rapid diffusion. It doesn’t contain prilocaine, which gives methemoglobinemia, and hasn’t been reported to cause purpura in atopic (allergy-prone) children.