Hair Reduction
What is Intense Pulse Light (IPL) treatment?
How does IPL treatment work?
How long does a treatment take?
How many treatments are needed?
What is the difference between laser and IPL?
How does it compare to other systems?
Does it hurt?
Photo Rejuvenation
How does pulsed light act in photorejuvenation?
Can all types of skin be treated?
Does it hurt?
Are there any secondary effects?
How do we judge whether the treatment has been successful?
How many sessions are necessary?
What is Intense Pulse Light (IPL) treatment?
Intense Pulsed Light hair removal is a new and advanced, long-term hair removal method. The therapist uses a hand piece, over the clients skin. The hand piece produces a beam of filtered light, which is absorbed by the hair. When the pigment in the hair follicle absorbs this light, the energy is converted into a gentle heat. The heat results in the damage of the hair follicle. This causes delayed re-growth of the hair, resulting in permanent destruction of the hair follicle.
Intense Pulse Light can also be used at different wavelengths to improve the appearance of aging skin. It can be performed, on the face (not eyes or nose),neck, chest and hands to improve signs of aging.
How does IPL treatment work?
In a nutshell, the therapist spreads an amount of cooling gel thinly over the area to be treated. Then the optical head is guided over this area and light flashes are instantaneously discharged on the skin. The whole area is covered in the same manner. A typical treatment session takes 30 minutes to 1 hour.
The intense selective light of the IPL system penetrates the skin and is absorbed by the melanin (pigmentation) in the hair. This absorption heats the hair and the heat is transmitted to the nourishment structure of the hair: the follicle. This results in it being heated to a temperature of 70oC for a millisecond and it is thus killed. Hundreds of hair follicles are destroyed by each flash; the hairs then fall out in one to two weeks. The principle of the IPL system nvolves the use of wide spectrum natural light filtered to remove Ultraviolet (UV) and Infrared (IR) wavelengths. This Intense and Selective Light is directed at the melanin, the pigment contained in, among other things, the hair. After the treatment, virtually all the visible hairs (except white or red hairs) in the treated area then fall out in approximately twenty days.
How long does a treatment take?
The IPL system permits large areas to be treated in a very short time. Sessions are rapid, virtually painless and the number of hairs deminishes with each session.
The remaining hairs thin and their growth becomes slower and slower. Progressively, unsightly hairs in the treated area disappear. After this, only a maintenance session from time to time is necessary depending on the needs of the individual.
As a rule of thumb a treatment will on average take less time than waxing, Smaller areas, such as the face or back of the neck, can be done in a minute. Larger area such as a pair of legs can take up to half an hour but usually nearer to the twenty minutes.
How many treatments are needed?
Four to six treatments on average. This of course depends on several factors such as the clients hair growth and skin type. Intense Pulse Light disables hair follicles in the active stage of hair growth cycle. The follicles in the dormant stage are not affected by the Intense Pulse Light but when they become active will be treated at the subsequent treatments.
What is the difference between laser and Intense Pulse Light?
Laser is a single colour of light, which means all the rays are the same wavelength. There are a number of different lasers used for hair removal. Their effectiveness varies with what the wavelength is. Some lasers are very effective, others are not so good, which is why one hears a lot of variation in results.
Intense Pulsed Light is broad spectrum light, made up of a range of wavelengths and colours. This range means one can treat more hair types effectively, with more consistent results. Besides removing hair from face and all body areas, Intense Pulsed Light has other uses. It can treat sun damage, pigmentation on face, hands and chests, small blood vessels and diffuse redness found on the face and chest.
Hair reduction: How does it compare to other systems?
Electrolysis is the benchmark. However it is a time consuming method (hair by hair), it is painful (the insertion of a needle into the hair follicle) and it can leave scars. The treatment can sometimes last several years.
Medical lasers: this method offers medium to excellent results depending on the type of laser, the experience of the practitioner as well as the hair type of each individual. The major disadvantage is the very high price of this type of treatment.
A laser operates only on a single wavelength and is theoretically adapted only to a single type of skin and hair. Because of its wide spectrum, the system allows different types of skin and hair to be treated. Results are 2 to 3 times more durable than a properly conducted wax treatment.
Hair reduction: Does it hurt?
Compared to waxing, absolutely not! The sensation differs from individual to individual, but can be compared to the slight ping that you feel when a rubber band pings back on you.
Clients may feel a slight discomfort but that quickly disappears after treatment. Furthermore a mild to moderate redness immediately after treatment that normally disappears after 24 hours maximum may occur. A temporary increase or decrease in skin pigmentation may also occur.
Photo Rejuvenation: How does pulsed light act in photorejuvenation?
Intense and pulsed light penetrates the skin and is then attracted by one of the chromophores or coloured particles. Light absorption causes the temperature to rise to such a degree that it will stimulate, destroy or sclerose target or adjacent tissues, depending on the case. Spots are removed or attenuated, the skin once more has a younger and more tonic aspect and lines and wrinkles are softened or virtually disappear
Photo Rejuvenation: Can all types of skin be treated?
Since the skin contains melanin, it is important that it is not too dark. Cutaneous melanin stops part of the light rays reaching the hair follicle and there is a large drop in efficiency as well as a high risk of pain, burns or modifications in skin colour (hyper or hypo pigmentation).It is therefore necessary to completely avoid treating skin types 4, 5 and 6, and to temporarily put off sessions with individuals who have too dark a tan.
Photo Rejuvenation: Does it hurt?
The sensation of pain is extremely variable from one individual to another; it depends on the concentration of melanin in the skin, the hair size, the hair density, etc. This is why the darker the skin, the greater the pain. In general, the sensation is that of an elastic band snapped against the skin. It should be noted that a sensation of pain or prickling may persist for 1 to 2 hours after a session.
Photo Rejuvenation: Are there any secondary effects?
In certain cases, there may be redness in the treated area, local oedema or peri-follicular papulae (goose bumps). These effects disappear several hours after the treatment. However, in the majority of cases, there is no visible secondary effect.In very rare cases, if the precautions are not respected, there may be transitory modifications to the pigmentation (hypo or hyper pigmentation).
Photo Rejuvenation: How do we judge whether the treatment has been successful?
In certain cases, results are immediately visible (telangiectasia). In others, the result will only begin to appear a few hours after the session and results will only really become visible after about 10 days. Sometimes results are only visible after multiple sessions (3 or 4) but the client feels that skin texture and tone have been changed.
Photo Rejuvenation: How many sessions are necessary?
The number of sessions depends on the nature of lesions to be treated and their size, on the result expected and the parameters used. This is why it is difficult to give an exact number of sessions. However it is generally accepted that an average of six sessions gives good results.
