When it comes to cosmetic surgeries and treatments, there are so many options available that even in some cases where you’ve been told there’s no solution for your problem, there actually might be. Meet Terry. She came to our office all the way from Asheville, for a problem she believed couldn’t be fixed.
For the past 20 years, she’d had dark spots on the inside of her lip that were progressively getting worse as time passed.
“I’m short, so people above me were looking down, and I have [a] very narrow lip line, so some of my skin inside my lip [just] shows naturally.”
Terry truly didn’t believe anything could be done when the subject of her lip came up during an appointment with her dermatologist in Asheville.
He thought it was simply “discoloration,” but to be sure, he sent her to another local dermatologist to confirm his diagnosis. However, instead of confirming, the second doctor believed the suspected superficial discoloration was something a bit deeper and more serious. His suggestion was to cut it all out — yikes!
After deciding to investigate further, Terry did some research and found a local laser specialist, but based on insurance requirements, her dermatologist needed to release her to go.
“He wouldn’t release me to do it, he said ‘no, you have to go to Charlotte.’ He felt this was the only place that was qualified to be able to do this.”
Fast forward to now, and Terry couldn’t be happier that she decided to follow the doctor’s advice. At Charlotte Skin & Laser, Dr. Elizabeth Rostan and laser specialist Leigh Anne, had the same thought as the second doc — minus the cutting part. They ran tests to confirm that the pigment was indeed superficial, not vascular, and they revealed great news. The discoloration was only pigment, which meant they instantly knew how to treat it.
The quality-switched laser, or “Q-switched,” offered the advantage of breaking up the tiny fragments of pigmentation without damaging the surrounding tissue, leaving Terry with results she didn’t even think were possible.
“I feel really great. It’s looking a whole lot better and I’m very happy.”
Two treatments later and a third for clean-up, Terry’s lips look amazing. Take a look for yourself:
