Why darker skin needs a different approach

The patient in this video is getting Halo laser for the first time. Dr. Emer's goals for her are to shrink pores and scars, even out texture and tone, and anti-aging.

Many people with darker skin or mixed ethnicity get nervous about lasers, because heat can cause hyperpigmentation, and done incorrectly a laser can burn the skin. Dr. Emer explains that this laser is very safe on darker skin tones when it is done correctly, and the deeper ProFractional pass is kept at a lower density for the same reason.

What Halo actually does

Halo creates microscopic holes in the skin. Dr. Emer calls the tiny treated columns epidermal necrotic debris, or MENDs. As they peel, they take some of the pigment with them, improving texture and brightening the skin.

The deeper wavelength goes under the surface to build collagen over time. On pore and ice pick scars, a TCA touch is added, and you can see the frost form on camera.

Calming skin with eczema and pigmentation

This patient has a history of eczema and some pigmentation, which Dr. Emer reads as inflammation. The lasers help calm it down, because they remove inflamed and damaged skin cells and remodel the skin to produce healthy skin and collagen.

Before treatment, the skin was prepared with a light peel using the practice's own products, a step the team calls priming the skin.

Managing the pain

Dr. Emer rates Halo around three or four out of ten. The patient put it at five. Instead of heavy nerve blocks, which make people swell more and add downtime, the team re-applies numbing cream between passes, a technique Dr. Emer says is not taught in textbooks and works better than lidocaine soaked gauze.

For the deeper ProFractional pass, which usually hurts a little more, the patient chose to add nerve blocks. Dr. Emer does Halo on himself every four months and admits it hurts, and says the result is worth it.

Always treat the neck

Dr. Emer always treats the neck, especially on younger patients, for sun damage and wrinkles as well as tightening. The point is to avoid a smooth face above an older looking neck later on.

After the lasers, a facial and a calming mask help the skin heal. Settings, sessions and downtime are set for each patient in consultation.