Actress Jennifer Aniston is known for lots of things, including her age-defying looks. In interviews, she attributes her amazing skin to preventive skin care and minimally or non-invasive cosmetic treatments that are designed to subtly enhance your features or reduce time’s effects on your skin. When asked about her favorite techniques, Aniston talks about one procedure time and time again: Clear + Brilliant. This treatment’s amazing effectiveness is one of the reasons we chose to incorporate it into our dermatology practice in Tucson.

So what exactly is Clear + Brilliant? In short, it’s a gentle laser resurfacing procedure. Clear + Brilliant can be a great introduction to clinical skincare because it goes a few steps beyond at-home treatments without creating any irritation or sensitivity. The Clear + Brilliant device actually falls into the category of fractional lasers. Instead of emitting laser energy in a solid beam, this gentle class of lasers breaks the energy into smaller columns, leaving much of the skin untouched. This approach still yields smooth, attractive results without the redness and irritation so often associated with laser resurfacing.

Because Clear + Brilliant is so gentle and treats a variety of different concerns, it’s a great “all-purpose” laser and is appropriate for lots of different types of skin. It’s popular for treating the following:

  • Red and brown discoloration
  • Dullness or “tired”-looking skin
  • Fine lines

When you visit us for a Clear + Brilliant treatment, you can plan to be in the office for about an hour. We begin by numbing your face with a topical product, which takes about 30 minutes to take effect. Once your face is numbed and ready for treatment, your provider moves the handpiece across your skin in a slow, controlled motion. The handpiece emits laser energy. Although you likely won’t feel much sensation during treatment, we apply a soothing mask to your face immediately after treatment.

One of the things our patients (and Jennifer Aniston) love most about Clear + Brilliant is its minimal downtime. There’s no reason you can’t return to your normal activities as soon as treatment is over, although some lingering redness may persist for a few hours. Dryness is also common and can be mitigated with moisturizing products created for post-procedure skin care.

For patients who are significantly concerned with postponing the aging process, we often recommend Clear + Brilliant as a part of our Proactive Aging Management protocol. This approach treats the entire body, not just the skin, to stave off many of the processes that cause rapid or premature aging. Instead of thinking of aging as a cosmetic concern, we approach it as a holistic change, affecting nearly all of the body’s systems. With our Proactive Aging Management approach, we can reduce the effects of aging from the inside out.