Skin Peels

During your consultation with Dr. Kristina Zakhary in her office in Calgary, Dr. Zakhary will design an individualized Facial Skin Treatment Program for you, which may include some or all of the following:

• Medical Skin Care Cream Program,  which is a personalized at home daily skin care regimen consisting of medical grade skin care products which are designed to penetrate into the deeper skin layers and to clarify, brighten and hydrate your skin. This will help you to maintain the best results possible after a chemical peel. Dr. Zakhary will carefully customize and monitor your skin care regimen in order to ensure that you are using the best available products in the most efficient way for your individual skin needs. 
• Dr. Zakhary is a medical doctor who is American Board Certified in Facial Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery, and she may prescribe Prescription Medications for you to use together with your skin treatments as part of her approach to maximize your results for improvement of conditions such as Aging skin, Acne, or Rosacea

• Chemical skin Peels are non invasive liquid preparations including glycolic acid and trichloracetic acid (TCA) which work to exfoliate the upper most layers of dead skin cells, and to improve skin texture and colour. The procedure usually takes around 30 minutes and patients can usually return to their social activities immediately after the treatment.

This combination of medical skin care creams, prescription medications, and chemical peels can work to improve the skin for:

• Most age groups (younger patients with acne, patients who wish to maintain good healthy skin, and patients with aging skin)
• Most skin types (including darker and tanned skin types)
• A variety of skin conditions and sensitivities (including very sensitive skin)
• All skin areas (face, neck, chest, hands)

Dr. Zakhary's combination of medical skin care creams (Obagi), prescription medications and chemical peels are non invasive and:

• Is Painless
• Produces natural-looking, healthy skin which is smooth, bright and hydrated.
• Produces a healthy, youthful glow to your face
• Is non invasive and Safe

This skin treatment consists of two stages :

• Stage 1: The skin preparation medical cream pre-peel program, lasting for 6-8 weeks.
• Stage 2 : The skin chemical peel:  "light", or "medium"

The Chemical Peel Program (Light, or Medium Concentrations)
The chemical peel program is an essential step after the preparation stage in order to further improve your skin condition.

During your chemical peel treatment, Dr. Zakhary will gently apply the chemical liquid (for example: glycolic acid or trichloracetic acid TCA) to your skin to exfoliate the top most layer of collected dead skin and reorganize your collagen and elastic skin fibres. 

The actual treatment is safe, and allows patients to achieve fresher and better looking skin quickly, and without the risks and complications of more invasive procedures.   Chemical peels can give your skin a nice healthy glow in around 30 minutes.  Many patients find that the chemical peel procedure is a soothing and relaxing treatment that is great before special events such as wedding and reunions, since it has little down time.

Dr. Kristina Zakhary performs 2 types of peels in Calgary :

• "Light Chemical Peel" which is a low in concentration peel, and does not penetrate very deep into the skin.  This will give you around a 10 to 15% improvement in your skin colour and texture. This kind of chemical peel usually needs to be repeated every month for optimal results.
• "Medium Chemical Peel" which is moderate in concentration, and penetrates more deeply into the skin. This will give you a more obvious 15 to 25% improvement in skin colour and texture. This kind of chemical peel usually has a longer down time, but needs to be repeated less often, and has a more obvious skin improvement result.

Dr. Zakhary's skin therapy regimen is appropriate and safe for almost every skin type, but you should take care to advise Dr. Zakhary and postpone your chemical peel for at least 1 week if you have a sun burn, cold sore, or if you have been using Vitamin A creams.  You should also be careful to avoid using exfoliating agents or creams for up to 5 days after your chemical peel treatment, since your skin will be more sensitive to injury, and to practice good sun protection with Sunscreen to avoid sun damage.

Dr. Zakhary also recommends that you continue on going good medical therapy skin creams after your chemical peel treatments so that you can maintain your good skin condition.  These treatments are not usually available in a spa or medical day spa since they require proper medical supervision. Be reassured that the Chemical Peels that Dr. Zakhary performs are exclusive to facial plastic surgery and cosmetic dermatology offices, such as Dr. Zakhary's clinic in Calgary, in which the treatments are performed and supervised by a qualified medical doctor.