Stretch marks are a common problem. It is estimated that up to 90% of women develop them during the later stages of pregnancy, but anyone who rapidly increases in weight or size is also susceptible.
For those looking to find out how to get rid of stretch marks there are different options. You can do nothing and try to cover them up (after all, over time stretch marks will fade and become less obvious), you can use creams to help cover them up or you can go through laser surgery. This article will looks at laser surgery as the option and go over the pros and cons.
There are two good points in favour of laser surgery to treat stretch marks. The first and crucial point is that there is evidence to suggest that laser surgery does help reduce the effects. A recent study published showed that pulsed dye laser surgery gave “good and very good” subjective improvement to stretch marks in 33 out of 37 people. The second good thing going for laser surgery is that there is no actual cutting of the skin, which sets it out from the traditional methods and makes it immediately more appealing.
As you will expect though, there are some negative points. The first point is that although there is evidence to suggest laser surgery will improve the look of stretch marks, it won’t get rid of them altogether. Secondly, laser surgery isn’t cheap. You will need several treatments to receive the full benefit and at $400-1500 per treatment, the amount quickly adds up to several thousand.
Like all surgery, laser treatment is not without its risks. Possible problems include incomplete treatment of the problem, pain, infection, burning, scarring, skin discoloration and flaring up of cold sores. If the surgeon wishes to a general anaesthetic be sure to enquire on the risks associated.
If you have dark skin then note that the risk of discolouration increases, so be sure to ask the surgeon of their experience in treating people with the same skin colour. Also ask how much general experience they have. If you decide that this surgery is for you you will want to try to go through the treatment while the stretch marks are still fairly young and red in colour.
My final piece of advice is to thoroughly research all the options. Laser surgery is just one, but if you opt for it do your homework on the clinic – make sure it’s been recommended and is reputable.
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