Chemical Peels  – Freshen & Rejuvenate Your Skin

How does a Chemical Peel work?

With Chemical peels, a chemical solution is applied to the skin, which causes it to peel off. Then, the fresh skin is usually smoother and less wrinkled than the old skin; it's also temporarily more sensitive to the sun. Chemical peels can be done on the face, neck or hands.

What are the benefits of Chemical Peels?

• Reduce fine line wrinkles beneath the eyes and around the mouth
• Reduce the appearance of wrinkles resulting from sun damage, aging and/or hereditary influences
• Improve the appearance of mild scarring
• Help treat some types of acne
• Reduce age spots, freckles and melasma (dark patches from pregnancy or birth control pills)
• Improve dull skin
• Sun-damaged skin that may contain pre-cancerous keratoses that appear as scaly spots may improve, and new pre-cancerous lesions are less likely.

Who are good candidates for a Chemical Peel?

Fair-skinned and light-haired patients are ideal candidates. Darker skin patients may also have good results, depending on the problem being treated. Your Sylvana professional can advise you as to whether this procedure is a good fit for you.

How are chemical peels performed?

Chemical peels are performed right at Sylvana.

First, we thoroughly cleanse your skin with an agent that removes excess oils, and the eyes and hair are protected. One or more chemical solutions, such as glycolic acid, trichloroacetic acid, salicylic acid, lactic acid or carbolic acid (phenol), are applied to small areas on the skin. These applications cause the skin to slough, enabling new, regenerated skin to appear.

What should I expect during the procedure?

Most patients have a warm sensation that lasts five to 10 minutes, followed by a prickling sensation. Cool compresses may be applied to help alleviate the prickling. A deeper peel may require pain medication during or after the procedure.

What are the side effects?

It depends on the type of peel, of course, but the reaction is similar to a sunburn. Peeling usually involves redness, which is followed by scaling that lasts for three to seven days. Mild peels may be repeated at one to four-week intervals until the desired clinical effect is achieved.

Medium-depth and deep peeling may result in swelling, and redness that lasts for seven to 14 days. Medium-depth peels may be repeated in six to 12 months, if needed.

We emphasize that it is important to protect yourself from the sun after a chemical peel since the new skin is fragile and more susceptible to complications.

What are possible complications?

For patients with certain skin types, there is a risk of temporary or permanent color changes, and taking birth control pills, a subsequent pregnancy or a family history of brownish facial discolorations may increase the possibility of developing abnormal pigmentation.

There is a small risk of reactivation of cold sores in patients with a history of herpes outbreaks. This problem is treated with medication as prescribed by Dr. O’Connell.

Prior to treatment, it is important for patients to tell Dr. O’Connell about any past history of keloids (scar tissue overgrowth created at the site of a skin injury) or unusual scarring tendencies, as well as any history of x-rays treatments to the face or recurring cold sores.