Heal Faster After Plastic Surgery With Photobiomodulation Light Therapy
Learn How Blue and Yellow Light Therapy Support a Smoother, Faster Plastic Surgery Recovery
At Balikian Plastic Surgery, we want your recovery to be as smooth and comfortable as possible.
In addition to advanced surgical techniques, we use photobiomodulation (light therapy) to help patients heal faster, reduce swelling, and feel better during recovery.
By using blue light before surgery and yellow light after surgery, we can support your body’s natural healing process in a safe, non-invasive way.
What Is Photobiomodulation?
Photobiomodulation (PBM) is a treatment that uses specific wavelengths of light to stimulate your body’s own cells. Unlike lasers or heat-based devices, PBM works gently, without burning or damaging the skin. Instead, it energizes your cells and helps reduce inflammation, improve circulation, and speed up tissue repair.
Think of it as giving your body’s healing system a head start.
Blue Light Before Surgery : Preparing Your Skin
Blue light therapy is used prior to your procedure. Studies show that blue light (around 405–470 nanometers) can safely reduce bacteria on the skin.
It works by exciting molecules inside bacteria, which creates oxygen that damages the bacteria without harming healthy skin cells.
For surgery, this step is valuable because:
- It helps lower the amount of bacteria on your skin.
- It provides an extra layer of cleanliness alongside antiseptic washes.
- It is completely painless and drug-free.
By starting with blue light before your procedure, we can reduce the risk of surface bacteria that could interfere with your healing.
Yellow Light After Surgery : Supporting Recovery
Once your procedure is complete, we switch to yellow light therapy (around 590 nanometers) to calm the skin and help it heal.
Yellow light penetrates just below the skin’s surface, where it reduces redness and inflammation. Research suggests it can also reduce oxidative stress and support circulation in healing tissue.
For patients, this means:
- Less swelling and bruising after surgery.
- Reduced redness around the treatment area.
- Faster comfort and recovery, so you feel like yourself sooner.
This makes yellow light the perfect complement to your post-operative care.
Backed by Science
Clinical studies on light therapy in surgery and dermatology show that PBM can:
- Reduce pain and swelling after procedures like rhinoplasty and eyelid surgery.
- Improve the speed of healing in soft tissues.
- Support smoother, more comfortable recoveries compared to standard care alone.
By combining surgical expertise with advanced light therapy, Dr. Balikian and Dr. Frew are able to offer a recovery protocol that goes beyond what most practices provide.
What to Expect
Our light therapy protocol is designed to support your body at every stage of surgery.
Before your procedure, blue light treatments help prepare and protect your skin.
After surgery, gentle yellow light sessions calm inflammation and reduce swelling. In the weeks that follow, additional therapies can encourage deeper healing and help your results last longer.
- Before Surgery – A few short blue-light sessions to prepare your skin.
- After Surgery – Gentle yellow-light treatments to calm inflammation and swelling.
By following this sequence, patients experience smoother healing, less discomfort, and a faster return to daily life.
Safe, Comfortable, Effective
Light therapy is a non-invasive, painless, and scientifically backed treatment that supports healing without downtime. When delivered at the proper dose, it is completely safe and free of side effects. Each session takes just a few minutes and feels gentle and relaxing, with no heat or discomfort.
At Balikian Plastic Surgery, light therapy is offered as an advanced recovery option to help patients experience greater comfort, reduced swelling, and faster healing compared to standard recovery alone.
Experience a Faster, Smoother Recovery
By combining advanced surgical skill with modern recovery support like light therapy, our patients experience less swelling, less bruising, and a faster return to normal life.
This is one of the many ways we ensure you receive the highest level of care and the most natural-looking results.
Schedule your consultation today to learn how our “Blue Before, Yellow After” light therapy protocol can support your plastic surgery journey.
Discover What’s Possible
Learn More About Facial Plastic Surgery
Trust Your Face to a Facial Plastic Surgeon
Dr. Richard Balikian is a renowned facial plastic surgeon known for his dedication to patients throughout Southern California.
With more than two decades of experience and double board certification in Facial Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery and Otolaryngology – Head and Neck Surgery, he brings together surgical precision and an artist’s eye.
Dr. Balikian is among a select group of specialists whose advanced training is devoted entirely to procedures of the face and neck.
Richard V. Balikian, MD, FACS
Double Board-Certified Facial Plastic Surgeon
Balikian Facial Plastic Surgery: Richard V. Balikian, MD, FACS
Tyler Frew, MD
Board-Certified Plastic Surgeon
