California Esthetician State Board Practice Exam

Non-ablative laser treatments are specifically designed to penetrate the epidermis without causing any damage to its surface. These lasers work by delivering energy below the skin's outer layer, targeting deeper skin structures such as collagen and elastin fibers. As a result, they stimulate the body's natural healing processes, which can lead to improvement in skin texture, tone, and elasticity over time without the downtime associated with surface damage.

In contrast, ablative lasers remove layers of skin, affecting both the epidermis and the dermis, making them more invasive and requiring a longer recovery period. Thermal treatments may refer to the heat generated by certain types of lasers but do not specifically indicate whether they are ablative or non-ablative. Fractional lasers can be either ablative or non-ablative; however, the question specifies the type that penetrates without affecting the surface, which applies to the non-ablative lasers exclusively.