What is the difference between the following lasers

Question:
What is the difference between the following lasers:
1) erbium 2) fractional erbium 3) co2 laser (ultra plus) 4) fractional co2.... any others?

Answer:
Erbium and CO2 are two different wavelengths of lasers that are both useful for skin resurfacing.  They both cause the skin to peel but CO2 tends to be a stronger, more aggressive laser.  The term "fractional" means that the laser energy is being distributed into tiny fractions of energy spread out across the treatment area instead of treating the area completely.  Treating fractional allows for a faster recovery as treated skin can heal from its neighboring untreated skin.  Therefore it makes sense that the fractional CO2 laser is a great choice for an effective strong treatment but with a "fraction" (one week) of the downtime of a traditional CO2.  I use the Lumenis machine which delivers the energy in a smooth consistent fashion.  I also have an erbium machine in my office for patients with darker skin types or requiring a milder treatment.