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Non-surgical

Chemical Peels

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Skin Peels / Resurfacing Obagi® Blue Peel

The Obagi® Blue Peel is a TCA (trichloroacetic acid) peel. It removes thin surface layers of damaged skin. The damaged skin layers are replaced by healthier ones, allowing the skin’s own clarity and tightness to resurface. It can be used on the face, chest, arms, back, and legs to improve skin quality. Peels are complementary to the Obagi® line of skin care products available in my office. Peels can also be done as part of a larger surgical cosmetic procedure done in the outpatient OR in Palo Alto or Menlo Park. Skin products will help you heal faster from the peel.

The peel I prefer is a 15 or 20 percent Obagi® TCA peel. This peel is stronger than those performed by a facialist, which is why it gives great improvement in wrinkling and pigmentation. It works like laser facial resurfacing, but as an experienced plastic surgeon I prefer it to laser. Why? The peel is an in-office procedure; the downtime is reduced; and it is safe on the neck and chest in addition to the face, so you blend results from the face onto the neck and chest.

"Skin peels help resurface the skin. They are useful for patients with fine wrinkles, acne scarring, pigment irregularity, and sun damage." - Dr. Greenberg
*Individual results may vary

Why would you want to do this?

Skin peels help resurface the skin. They are useful for patients with fine wrinkles, acne scarring, pigment irregularity, and sun damage. Many problems are located in the superficial to medium depth of the skin, such as shallow scars, large pores, fine and medium depth wrinkles, epidermal and dermal pigment problems, actinic keratosis (pre-skin cancers), skin laxity, and acne. A peel improves or rids your skin of those problems.

How is this different than glycolic peels or Microdermabrasion?

The TCA peel can go deeper. Anything that is a “lunchtime” peel will exfoliate by removing the epidermis (the topmost layer of skin). A TCA peel reaches deeper, going into the mid level of the dermis. The dermis is where the problems are, such as wrinkles and pigment, so it causes a real change in your skin.

How is this different than laser resurfacing?

Laser resurfacing is similar to the peel: they both go to the dermal level to tighten skin and improve pigment problems. The difference is lasers make skin red for several months following the procedure. Lasers are not safe for the neck or chest. Also over time skin pigment can gradually lighten, causing an unsightly difference in skin tones. Laser is not safe to do on medium to darker skin types.

The blue peel is the first chemical peel to successfully resurface a broad spectrum of skin types, including Asian, African American, Indian, and Latin skin types. (Lasers can cause skin lightening or hyperpigmentation in these patients.) The photos say it all. For more information, go to www.Obagi.com. To see my personal patient results, please schedule an office appointment.