INTRODUCTION
For at least fifty years, we have been a nation of sun worshippers. We’ve basted and baked our faces and bodies on beaches, in back yards, and now, in tanning booths.

The very thing that we have equated with a healthy look, has, in fact, had the opposite effect. We now know harmful UV rays are the cause of premature wrinkles, uneven skin coloration, and pre-cancerous growths.

More and more women and men look to their plastic surgeons for skin revitalization and resurfacing to regain a fresher, more healthy and young-looking complexion. Dermabrasion, one such revitalizing treatment, can reverse the outward signs of aging as well as improve the appearance of acne scars and remove pre-cancerous keratoses. In addition, dermabrasion is useful in treating skin problems such as unwanted tattoos, scars caused by chicken pox or accidents, and other disfiguring conditions.

During dermabrasion surgery, the plastic surgeon uses a high speed rotating abrasive brush or diamond-impregnated burr (kind of like a mini-sander) to remove the outermost layers of damaged skin. The doctor controls how much skin will be removed and determines how deeply to penetrate the skin layers depending upon the degree of wrinkling or scarring. This abrasive or planing action evens out the skin, and a new layer of smoother, fresh skin will emerge.

Dermaplaning is a deeper planing of the skin often indicated when scars are very deep and/or crater-like. The surgeon uses a dermatome, an instrument which has an oscillating blade, to evenly skim off layers of skin to make the scarred area more even with the surrounding skin. Dermaplaning might be used in conjunction with dermabrasion, or other procedures such as face lift or chemical peel.

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