What's Involved in a Photofacial?

Light is both the friend and enemy of your skin’s health. Not enough sunlight and your body lacks vitamin D. Too much sunlight can mottle your skin’s appearance and worse. Caring for your skin requires a careful balancing act with the sun and its ultraviolet (UV) components. 

Sun damage is cumulative. It’s not simply about your exposure last weekend. You need to consider every weekend (and weekday) to this point in your life. When you find your skin shows uneven tone, it’s partly due in part to photo damage. Other culprits include things like acne, rosacea, and spider veins. 

Dermatologist and Mohs micrographic surgeon Jennifer Baron MD looks to light again to help patients recover smooth and even skin coloration. Instead of the sun, however, Dr. Baron chooses BroadBand Light (BBL)® therapy to restore your skin’s glow. Using light to repair sun damage? Yes, with a BBL photofacial. Here’s what’s involved. 

Defining broadband light (BBL)

Laser technology has many incredible applications including medical aesthetics. Lasers use single wavelengths of light tuned to treat specific issues, including collagen stimulation and tattoo removal. 

However, when your skin’s issue is photopigmentation — changes in skin color caused by sun exposure — a single wavelength of light isn’t always up to the task. That’s when we turn to broadband light. 

Simply put, BroadBand Light therapy uses a wide range of light wavelengths delivered at high intensity to stimulate changes in your skin that break down clumps of pigment over a broad spectrum, an ability that laser treatments don’t have. 

Treatment targets for photofacials

The first and most obvious type of photopigmentation arrives in the form of sunspots. Your skin generates pigmentation as a protective effort against sun exposure. You see these as brownish spots of skin as pigment cells cluster. Sunspots are prime candidates for a photofacial. 

Red skin discolorations occur too, as a result of past acne outbreaks or from skin conditions such as rosacea. Exposure to extreme environmental conditions can also cause redness and spider veins, along with injuries, alcohol consumption, or even just the passage of time. 

What’s involved in a photofacial? 

Depending on the amount of skin surface needing treatment, a BBL photofacial usually lasts about 30 minutes. It’s a well-tolerated treatment, made more comfortable with cooling gels and topical numbing creams if desired. 

The process uses broadband light energy to warm and stimulate the skin at the dermis level, where collagen resides. This warming action starts a turnover of tissue. New collagen forms as old collagen gets flushed away naturally by your body. 

The great part about the process is that those discoloring agents start to fade as old collagen breaks down. You often see dramatic results with your first treatment. Stubborn pigmentation may require several sessions for best results. 

There’s little to no downtime, though you may see some redness and minor swelling. While your skin may temporarily seem sunburned, there’s no UV component to BBL, so there’s no lasting damage to your skin. 

The best way to learn more about what a BBL photofacial has to offer you is in consultation with Dr. Baron. Contact our San Jose office by calling 408-418-8780 to book your personalized session. Your smoother complexion is there waiting, below the surface. Let a photofacial bring out the best in you. Book your session today.