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Home Laser Hair Removal

Skin Clinic MD — Wed, 11 Nov 2009 21:23:19 +0000

The’re are a growing number of ‘home laser hair removal’ devices appearing on the market. This article on do it yourself laser hair removal supposes that medical spas and laser clinics are feeling the heat.

My own experience is that people looking to do it yourself home laser hair removal (or skin tightening or complexion light-based photo-therapies) are really looking to save money and are buying a device in the hope that it will work. Patients who are actually interested in laser hair removal or skin tightening are put off by these types of home remedies. I’ve never heard that a laser clinc or medical spa is suffering from this, but I may be wrong.

Does anyone running a medical spa or laser hair removal clinc feel differently? Is laser hair removal at a medspa moving to home laser hair remvoal that a do it yourself laser treatment?

Here’s the post from Wired:

Want to get rid of some unsightly hair, but don’t want to spend the big bucks for electrolysis or a laser clinic? Now, you can buy your own laser and do it yourself.

And people are.

The growth of the at-home cosmetic-device market, which includes personal lasers, has some professionals buzzing. At an annual conference hosted by the American Society of Plastic Surgeons, Barry DiBernardo, a New Jersey surgeon, delivered a talk in Seattle about the pros and cons of the DIY market on the ASPS’s “Hot Topics” panel.

“We have to make sure that the patients are getting good, safe treatments. If they are getting good, safe treatments, then whether they are doing it at home or not, I’m not as worried,” DiBernardo told Wired.com by phone. “What I’m worried about is that they are seeing things in the Skymall on the airplane and spending hundreds of dollars, thousands of dollars on something that is not going to work or is unproven.”

New cosmetic medical devices including DIY lasers are expected to explode into a $1.3 billion market 2013, up from just $296 million in 2008, according to the analyst group Medical Insights. The growth in the market appears to be coming from light-based products that claim to either remove or grow hair on the human body. The Silk’n Hair was the first at-home laser device to be approved by the FDA, in 2006, although it didn’t come on the market until early 2008.

The laser hair removers damage the hair follicles that are in their growth phase, generally leading to some permanent reductions of body hair. DiBernardo questioned whether the lasers used in the home devices were powerful enough to get the kind of results that clinics achieve.

“In general, these devices are low-powered versions of the doctor versions. We’ve been doing hair removal since 1998, so we know that they work and how well they do,” he said. “I think these home devices have some effect, but they legally can’t have the power of what we fire at people.”

DIY Laser Market Exploding, Cosmetic Surgeons Not Happy (wired.com)
DIY Laser Hair Removal And DIY Botox Markets Expanding [Household] (gizmodo.com)

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Hair Removal Clinic

Skin Clinic MD — Sun, 18 Oct 2009 18:04:56 +0000

Laser Hair Removal Clinic Procedures

Generally, most IPL treatments technically operate the same way when performing a hair removal procedure. The parameters on the cosmetic laser or IPL (joules, milliseconds, pulse, etc.) should be set according to the skin analysis and history performed on the patient.

It is important to instruct clients not to wear dark clothing near the area to be treated as the pigment in the clothing could potentially be absorbed by the Intense Pulsed Light Device (IPL) or cosmetic laser light and can result in a burn. The patient should be instructed to refrain from using any body washes, lotions, cosmetics, or any skin medications the day of the treatment.

Some patients may prefer to have a topical anesthetic applied prior to the procedure. If any residue of the anesthetic remains, it should be wiped clean from the skin. Often a cooling gel or other cooling apparatus is applied to the skin.

A spot test should be performed on the intended treatment area. (Small white sheets of paper with perforated holes are often available for spot testing patients.) In the spot test procedure, the test paper is placed over the area to be treated and one firing of the laser or IPL device is applied over the hole in the paper. After waiting 10 to 15 minutes, the area is checked for unusual redness swelling, bruising, or any other undesirable responses. If the area emits a slight reddish hue with no other abnormalities, the device settings are optimal.

Some cosmetic lasers or IPLs require a second pass over the treatment area with different settings.

Hair Removal Clinic: Post Treatment

After a aesthetic laser or IPL hair removal treatment he patient may experience a mild burning sensation and redness following the hair removal procedure. This is can be expected and can be relieved by applying ice packs and an oral anti-inflammatory or pain medication if warranted by the physician. Exposure to ultraviolet light (sun, tanning beds/booths) should be avoided. A sunscreen with an SPF 20 UVA and UVB protection should be applied to the skin prior to leaving the office.

In the case of burning or blistering a topical antibiotic medication should be applied and the skin clinics physician should be consulted.

Unfortunately, some patients may experience temporary pigment changes such as lightening or darkening of the skin.

Laser hair removal clinic patient education: The patient should be made aware that an actively growing hair is the only follicle which will respond to IPL treatments. In the weeks following the procedure, the portion of the hair which remains under the skin (after shaving prior to the procedure) will be be expelled. The patient will begin to see these hairs protrude from the follicles which may be misinterpreted as hair regrowth. This is especially more noticeable in areas of the body which has thicker or more coarse hair such as the armpits and genitals.

Laser hair removal patients should also be informed that no laser or IPL device can destroy all of the hair follicles… especially after only one procedure. Some hairs are in their dormant state and can’t be treated, some have been placed into a prolonged dormant state due to the procedure effects, and others have been transformed into vellus hairs (light, fine hairs). Several treatments are required at monthly intervals for an optimal outcome. A maintenance procedure performed at yearly intervals is recommended for permanent hair removal.

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About Laser Hair Removal

Skin Clinic MD — Sun, 22 Mar 2009 00:44:52 +0000

About Laser Hair Removal:

Treatment Before laser and IPL devices entered the market, electrolysis was the only form of permanent or long-term hair removal available. Electrolysis is still performed today, but it is painful and invasive to the skin, allowing for a chance of infection. Unfortunately, this painstaking process is performed one hair follicle at a time. During the electrolysis procedure, a fine needle is inserted into the hair follicle, delivering a galvanic current to destruct the follicle stem cells. Regular maintenance procedures are often required for years after the initial treatment. With laser and pulsed light technology, hundreds of hair follicles are treated at a time and vary upon the spot size (the size of the tip of the device delivering energy). These non-invasive hair removal procedures only take minutes to perform instead of the hours required with electrolysis.

About Laser Hair Removal: Melanin

The most important consideration about laser hair removal prior to a procedure is the patient’s skin type and hair color. Laser hair removal is based on selective photothermolysis (using light and heat for destruction of a hair follicle) with melanin being the target chromophore (chemical grouping that produces color). The difference between the absorption of laser or light energy by melanin in the hair follicle and melanin in the epidermis determines the amount of energy that can be safely used without harming the skin. Light skinned patients with dark hair are considered to be the ideal patients for laser hair removal On the other hand, a patient with very dark skin and gray or white hair, would have little if any response. Since melanin in the hair shaft and follicle are the target source for laser and IPL hair removal procedures, it is important for patients during their initial consultation not to tweeze, wax or use any depilatory device prior to hair removal. The patient can, however, shave the area to be treated (which preserves the chromophore in the follicle), or can use hair removal creams. Hair which is protruding from the skin can singe during a laser or light treatment which causes an unpleasant smell and possible flares.

About Laser Hair Removal: Treatment Day

Most laser hair removal devices technically operate the same way when performing a treatment. The parameters (joules, milliseconds, pulse, etc.) on the device should be set according to the patient’s skin analysis and history. Patients should not wear dark clothing near the area to be treated as the pigment in the clothing can be absorbed by the laser resulting in a burn. The patient should be advised to refrain from using any lotions, body washes, cosmetics, or skin medications the day of treatment. A topical anesthetic may be applied prior to the procedure, but if any residue of the anesthetic remains, it should be wiped clean from the skin. A patch test should be performed on the targeted treatment area. Several treatments are required at monthly intervals for the best outcome and yearly maintenance procedure is highly recommended.

Want to know more about laser hair removal? Join our mailing list and get your free med spa and laser clinic report that details all of the nonsurgical cosmetic medical treatments including an entire section all about laser hair removal.

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Skin Clinic MD » about laser hair removal

Home Laser Hair Removal

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Hair Removal Clinic

About Laser Hair Removal