Laser treatment is one of the most effective ways to brighten your skin, reduce pigmentation, wrinkles, acne scars and uneven skin tone. But with so many different laser treatments in the market, how do we find the one that is best for us?
In this blog post, we will guide you through three skin-brightening treatments that are popular in Singapore – Pico Laser, Pearly Peel, and Clear + Brilliant Laser.
Before we dive into the various laser treatments, we need to understand our skin condition and what we wish to treat. Most of us who undergo skin-brightening lasers suffer from dull skin. This refers to skin that lacks radiance, brightness, or a healthy glow, which gives a lacklustre and tired appearance.
Dull skin can be caused by various factors.
Insufficient sleep, inadequate hydration and poor dietary choices can result in dry skin, inflammation, decreased collagen, poor nutrition and overall unhealthy skin
Excessive UV exposure from the sun can trigger pigmentation and darken your skin.
Conversely, prolonged hours in an air-conditioned environment may dehydrate the skin, which accelerates skin ageing.
Lack of a proper skincare routine can result in dry skin and a buildup of dead skin cells, resulting in dull skin.
Certain skin conditions contribute to dull skin. Melasma is a common pigmentary disorder that gives an uneven skin tone. Rosacea is another common skin condition which may cause inflammation and enlarged pores, thereby affecting the radiance of your skin.
Pico Laser is a non-ablative pigment laser that can treat multiple skin concerns, including stubborn pigmentation, enlarged pores and acne scars.
“Pico Laser” isn’t specific to any particular brand or laser device manufacturer. Instead, it refers to a type of laser technology with a pulse duration measured in picoseconds.
How short is a picosecond? It is one trillionth of a second, or 1/1,000,000,000,000 to put it in numbers. This remarkable precision sets it apart from other laser technologies such as Q-switched lasers, which fires lasers in nanosecond pulses.
The high-energy picosecond pulses fired by a Pico Laser targets pigments under the skin in a very precise manner. This allows the pigments to be selectively treated and shattered into smaller fragments. The shattered pigments are then easily removed by your body’s immune system. Due to the speed in which Pico Lasers destroy pigments, it has a relatively short downtime.
Apart from pigmentation removal, Pico Lasers can also stimulate collagen production, which improves the appearance of enlarged pores and acne scars.
Pico Laser offers a multitude of benefits that cater to various skin conditions.
Pico Laser treats various forms of pigmentation, such as sunspots, age spots, freckles, and seborrheic keratosis. In certain cases, it can even treat stubborn pigments such as moles and birthmarks such as cafe au lait macules and Becker’s Naevus.
Pico laser can safely treat melasma and PIH from acne breakouts. For better results, I often combine pico laser with RF Gold Microneedling.
An uneven skin surface affects how light is reflected off your face, resulting in a dull appearance. Pico Lasers can stimulate collagen production, which smooths out depressed acne scars and shrinks enlarged pores, giving your face a radiant glow.
Clear + Brilliant Laser uses fractional laser technology to resurface and rejuvenate the skin. It works best for correcting early signs of skin ageing, or as a preventive treatment. The idea of “pre-juvenation” is becoming especially popular, where the focus is on prevention, rather than correction of skin ageing.
Clear + Brilliant Laser uses a fractionated glass erbium beam, which stimulates collagen formation, initiates new skin growth, and shrinks pores. The fractionated glass erbium beam gently creates micro-channels within the skin, which act as pathways for stimulating collagen production, giving your skin strength, elasticity and youthfulness.
As your skin’s collagen production increases, fine lines and wrinkles decrease, giving you a better skin texture.
The resurfacing effect also sheds dull and damaged skin, which promotes the renewal of skin cells. This renewed skin often has better texture, smaller pores, and a youthful glow.
Clear + Brilliant Laser addresses fine lines and wrinkles, improves skin texture, and promotes smoother, more youthful-looking skin.
Superficial pigmentation such as sunspots, lentigo and age spots may also be treated with Clear + Brilliant, which evens out your skin tone.
This versatile treatment is also useful in reducing acne scars and large pores through its collagen-stimulating and skin renewal properties.
Fotona Pearly Peel addresses a wide array of skin concerns, from fine lines and wrinkles to uneven tone and texture. It uses a carefully calibrated fractionated erbium laser beam to target specific layers of the skin. This allows us to address various skin concerns without causing harm to surrounding tissues. The precision of Fotona Pearly Peel is enabled by Variable Square Pulse technology (VSP), which minimises any potential thermal side effects, ensuring your treatment is targeted, gentle and effective.
Fotona Pearly Peel, as its name suggests, aims to give you skin that resembles the smooth surface of an iridescent pearl. It is a good treatment for enlarged pores, acne scars, fine lines and ageing skin. It is available as a treatment on its own or as the last step of our 6D Pro Facelift laser treatment.
Fotona Pearly Peel uses an erbium laser to perform a gentle cold ablation that gently removes dead skin. By doing so, this superficial laser peel replaces the dull skin with a layer of smooth, healthy and radiant skin from within.
Fotona Pearly Peel refines your skin’s texture, leading to a reduction in enlarged pores. Your skin’s surface becomes smoother and more refined, leaving your complexion looking polished.
Fotona Pearly Peel gently fades the appearance of acne scars. By stimulating the skin’s natural healing mechanisms, the treatment helps restore a smoother and more even skin surface.
Fotona Pearly Peel’s gentle exfoliation and collagen-stimulating effects contribute to the softening of these lines, revealing smoother and more youthful skin.
The treatment prompts collagen and elastin production, giving your skin a rejuvenating lift. This mild yet noticeable tightening effect contributes to a more youthful and refreshed appearance.
With Fotona Pearly, recovery is relatively quick, requiring zero to minimum downtime.
| Pico Laser | Fotona Pearly Peel | Clear + Brilliant | |
| Laser type | Nd:YAG | Erbium | Glass erbium |
| How it works | Focused beam breaks down pigments under the skin, which is then cleared by the body.
MLA beam creates multiple microthermal treatment zones that leads to collagen formation |
Fractionated erbium beam stimulates collagen formation and growth of new skin, causing pores to shrink | Fractionated glass erbium beam stimulates collagen formation and growth of new skin, causing pores to shrink |
| Pain level | Minimal to moderate | Minimal | Minimal |
| Downtime | 0 to 5 days depending on treatment type and intensity | 0 to 1 day | 1 to 3 days depending on treatment type and intensity |
Pico Laser, Clear + Brilliant Laser, and Fotona Pearly Peel each bring their own unique benefits to the table, helping to unveil the radiant and youthful skin you desire. The cost for each of the three laser treatments is comparable, starting at $300-$350 per session. But how do you choose the treatment that’s right for you?
It depends on what other skin concerns you have. For pigmentation, Pico Laser is the clear winner. When it comes to pore reduction,, the Clear + Brilliant Laser outperforms the rest. Fine lines are best treated with Fotona Pearly Peel.
If you’re new to laser treatment, you might consider the Pico Laser, which is thought of as a “beginner laser” because of its versatility and short downtime. It is not surprising that Pico Laser is one of the most popular lasers in the market today.
At the end of the day, I recommend seeking professional guidance in picking the right treatment, as there are multiple considerations that affect the decision of which laser to choose. The best treatment for you will be the one that suits your skin condition and aligns with your desired outcomes.
Your skin is unique, and so are your beauty goals. At SL Aesthetic Clinic, we always begin with a consultation to hear you out. We will then develop a personalised treatment plan for you, which may involve multiple treatment modalities.
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