Do-it-yourself cosmetic lasers worry doctors

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Do-it-yourself cosmetic lasers worry doctors
July 23, 2007
Vanessa Coria
WVEC.com


What if you didnĚt have to go to the doctor and spend big bucks to revitalize your skin?

"Nobody wants to look older than they have to," says Marsha Pendleton, who spent $400 for a laser light treatment.

Last year, more than 11-million cosmetic procedures were performed in this country and 80-percent of them were non-surgical.

For a couple of hundred dollars, you can buy a laser for in-home treatments to smooth wrinkles and get rid of blotches. Hand held, at-home lasers claim you can get professional results for less.

Dr. Jay Burns, former president of the American Society for Laser Medicine and Surgery, calls them the wave of the future. But he says some of the devices are not based on legitmate science.

For example, the RejuvaWand sells for $159.000 online. It has two infrared wavelengths of laser energy similar to the high-powered devices that cost hundreds of dollars a session.

Instead of half a dozen or so treatments over night, people are advised to use the personal laser daily.

"The theory is that you do it every single day, so it adds up. Well, zero plus zero I think equals zero," says Dr. Burns.

After several at-home treatments, Pendleton returned to a skilled clinician.

"I can already see more results than what I smeared on my face at home," she notes.

Experts say todayĚs personal lasers are really not powerful enough to do any real harm.