Karan Lal, DO: Comparing the Safety, Benefits of Dermatologists and Medical Spas

During his recent interview with HCPLive, Karan Lal, DO, spoke about the issue of cosmetic complications and patient safety, as well as the benefits of going to a dermatologist or a medical spa.

Lal works as Affiliated Dermatology Scottsdale’s director of pediatric dermatology and cosmetic surgery and he also serves as social media chair for the Society for Pediatric Dermatology.

“So, this is actually a really big topic amongst dermatology and dermatologists; this concept of the truth in advertising, and patient safety,” he explained. “And so the American Society of dermatologic surgery, the American Academy of Dermatology, the American Society of Laser Medicine and Surgery, all of these organizations have kind of made it a point to kind of focus on patient safety.”

Lal stressed the importance of safety, adding that patients should know what they are looking for when it comes to different procedures.

He also added that certification for procedures such as laser treatments vary from state to state, pointing out that these kinds of procedures require careful training.

“I had 5 years-worth of laser training before I touched an actual real patient, as my own self,” he said. “And so, you know, within 5 years, you learn about mistakes, you learn about complications, you learn the science behind lasers.”

Lal went on to state that patients seeking out procedures from those who he describes as less-qualified, may end up with worse results.

“You're gonna get a procedure that's much cheaper, you know,” he said. “And a lot of people are afraid to go to or even ask dermatologists about pricing for cosmetic procedures because they're afraid to know what the price is and are afraid that they can afford it.”

He added that patients have a wide variety of different needs and that a dermatologist may end up knowing what is the best thing for their skin’s health.

“Everyone has different skin,” Lal said. “Some people have rosacea-prone skin, some people have eczema-prone skin, some people have acne-prone skin, and in order to understand the nuances and treat those conditions medically, it's very important to take all that into consideration when you're doing something with a laser or cosmetic procedure.”

For more information, view the full HCPLive interview segment above.