Is it common to get cold sores after a Fraxel treatment?
I suffered from a severe cold sore outbreak on my upper lip after my first (and probably only) Fraxel treatment. I've never experienced a cold sore ever before. Is this a common side effect? Why now after a Fraxel treatment?
Answers (3)
Cold Sore Breakout After Laser Treatment
Facial Plastic Surgeon
Hi cpt,
All patients receiving laser treatments on the face should take prophylactic anti-viral medications for one week, beginning a day before their treatment. The heat of the laser may stimulate dormant virus into an active state. The virus will easily spread on the lasered skin; therefore all patients should take the pre-treatment anti-virals. Hope that you are over the out break. Be well.
Dr. P
Cold sores are very common after Fraxel
It is almost a given that FRAXEL will "bring out" herpes cold sores after a treatment. In the U.S., of all adults, about 80% carry the Herpes simplex I virus in the cervical ganglia, whether they know it or not. There are certain well recognized stimuli that will provoke an outbreak: sunlight or other UV, menses, lip trauma such as permanent cosmetic lip tattooing, and "trauma" around the mouth, as in FRAXEL treatment. It is fairly standard practice to put patients on an anti-herpes medication, like Valtrex, before during and after treatments, to prevent an outbreak. Some patients decline this, saying they have never had an outbreak. But, as you see, you can have the virus dormant within you, and for this reason, my patients always take the Valtrex. You should take it according to your doctor's instructions for all your subsequent treatments. Follow your doctor's recommendations for this current episode to minimize residual effect on your skin.
I wouldn't avoid future FRAXEL treatments because of this. If you take Valtrex or a similar anti-herpetic medication before, during and after your other treatments, you should do fine.
Cold sores are a well known problem
Yes, unfortunately cold sores are a well known problem after any laser treatment.
Nearly 80% of adults have antibodies to the herpesvirus that causes cold sores. Almost everyone has been exposed to the herpes virus that causes common cold sores. The virus remains dormant in the nerve endings and may or may not be actively shedding. During times of stress, e.g. other illnesses, the virus for some reason becomes more active and you get a cold sore.
Laser resurfacing is basically an injury to your skin and your body works overtime to repair that injury, just like your body would work overtime to fight off a cold or flu. So, in this state of "stress" the herpes virus becomes active and creates a cold sore.
You should call your physician and let them know immediately. A herpetic lesion in the area of resurfacing can lead to additional unwanted scarring. The course of the lesion, i.e it's healing time, can be accelerated by prescription medications like acyclovir or valcyclovir. Your physician can prescribe these for you. In addition, if you undergo laser resurfacing again, you can take these medications prophylactically hopefully to avoid an outbreak.
Hope this helps.
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