Comparing resurfacing options? Read the guide to CO2 laser resurfacing in Newport Beach — the two lasers suit different patients.

✨ 3-Treatment Package: $1600 ✨

Single-mode Erbium resurfacing, performed personally by Dr. Amir Mortazavi, MD.

Erbium is an ablative laser — it removes a controlled layer of surface tissue so the skin regenerates smoother and more even. What distinguishes it from CO2 is how much heat it leaves behind.

Erbium is absorbed by water far more efficiently than CO2, which means it vaporises tissue with much less thermal energy spreading into surrounding skin. Practically: a cleaner ablation, less collateral heating, faster healing and lower risk of prolonged redness and post-inflammatory pigmentation.

The trade-off is that less thermal effect also means less collagen contraction. CO2 goes further for deep textural change.

Treats: surface texture and roughness · dullness and uneven tone · sun damage and pigmentation · fine lines · enlarged pore appearance · overall skin clarity and brightness

Where this sits among your options.

This treatment — single-mode Erbium. Surface renewal with a shorter, more predictable recovery. The right choice for texture and tone rather than deep structural change.

Lumera Dual — adds a fractional pass beneath the full-field ablation, reaching deeper for collagen remodeling. More result, more recovery.

CO2 — strongest for deep wrinkles and established scarring, with the longest downtime.

The lighter option is frequently the correct one. If your concern is surface quality rather than deep texture, this treats it with less recovery — not a lesser version of something better. Dr. Mortazavi will say so if a stronger modality would serve you better, and equally if it wouldn't.

Erbium is often the safer choice for deeper skin tones.

Because it produces less residual heat, Erbium carries meaningfully lower post-inflammatory hyperpigmentation risk than CO2. For Fitzpatrick IV and above — where ablative CO2 carries real pigmentation risk — Erbium is frequently the ablative option that's actually appropriate.

This is one of the practical advantages of having multiple resurfacing platforms available: the device is chosen for your skin rather than your skin being fitted to whichever device the practice owns.

What to expect: 30 to 45 minutes with topical numbing. Expect redness, mild swelling on the first day, and light flaking as treated tissue sheds. Most patients are presentable in three to five days — shorter than CO2, longer than non-ablative.

Results improve over the following weeks as new collagen develops. Some patients treat as a single session; others do a short series depending on the degree of change wanted.

Strict sun protection during healing is essential. Unprotected exposure during recovery is the most common cause of a disappointing result from a well-performed treatment.

Not appropriate with active acne, active cold sores, or recent isotretinoin use.