Posts Tagged ‘IPL’

IPL vs. Lasers For Hair Removal

Wednesday, February 4th, 2009


Is Intense Pulsed Light (IPL) Really Better Then Conventional Lasers For Hair Removal?

If you look at all the hoopla regarding intense pulsed light (also known as IPL), you may be lead to believe that it’s all that with a cherry on top when we’re talking about laser hair removal.  Although it is good, manufactures, scientists, and practitioners will argue which is more effective. It has at the least been embraced as a favorite among cosmetic surgeon because it is less expensive and faster then regular laser hair removal. When doing your research on intense pulse light pay close attention to the small print and how the ads are phrased..  You will normally find IPL advertised as permanent hair ‘reduction’ rather than ‘removal’.

Don’t get me wrong. IPL is a big step forward in technology. It’s versatility allows for it to do a great deal more then only remove hair.  With it you are able to remove Tattoos, acne, scares, wrinkles, freckles, spider veins, and so on.  The one thing that it’s NOT good for is removing WHITE hairs because it still relies of color and pigment to to ‘target’.

When it comes to removing wrinkles and scars, it integrates a method called photorejuvenation.  This is done by distributing controlled wounds that force the skin to repair it’s self as desired.  As you begin to see, this requires a lot of training and practice.  So when considering IPL for your cosmetic surgery needs, be sure that you find a practitioner that has lots of experience.

Another huge plus for the IPL is that it’s wave length can be increased so that if penetrates deeper into the skin virtually ignoring the outer skin layer. This is where it comes in handy for removing tattoos. Then it can be adjusted to a shorter wavelength for the next patient that is there to get rid of freckles.

IPL can also be delivered in bursts or pulses of light. The time duration of each pulse and the delay between the pulses can be adjusted with each treatment site. Longer durations are generally better for treating larger targets. Shorter pulse durations are generally better for treating smaller structures.
An experienced physician operator can customize the settings to select the number of pulses, duration of pulses, wavelengths, and delay between pulses to best match the relative depth, size, and absorption characteristics of the intended target.  All of these variable can bring about incredible results in the right hands, but a damaging weapon for under trained technician.

When it comes to name brands, I am not going to allege that one is more effective then the other,  only that some have la wider ranges of setting.  The PhotoDerm and EpiLight would be looked at as more powerful solely in the sense that they have additional options. i.e. more ‘flexible’. The  Quantum (Aculight) and Vasculight come with fewer settings to chose from. We’ll just call these ‘limited’ models. The reason that you’d want to know what type of equipment is being used at any given clinic is this… The ‘limited’ models are designed so that a technician can operate it without setting the device to a damaging setting. But on the other hand, if you can’t fine tune a particular IPL, that leaves an opening for over doing the wrong setting, in essence, being counter productive when it comes to safety.  At the same time though, whenever you’re going to be working with one of the more versatile models, you want to make certain that you’re getting the lead Dr. That’s been exhaustively trained on that make and model.

In the end, impulse pulsed light has a wider range of purposes that include hair removal for a broader variety of skin and hair types and colors. None the less,  the most dependable results for permanent hair removal are from the standard laser when utilized on dark haired, light skinned people.

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Different Laser Hair Removal Systems

Wednesday, January 7th, 2009




Laser hair removal is big business and big money. The popularity continues to skyrocket and even present a problem for the FDA.

Manufactures are jumping on the band wagon submitting there latest product to them for approval that they can hardly keep up. This is good for you as a consumer because the competition will bring about new innovations and lower costs to us as an individual.

The list of approved hair removal lasers are ever changing and ever growing. To find that latest you will need to contact the FDA by phone or their web site if you know the name of the device or the manufacturer.  They do not however rate or compare them.

Laser hair removal methods each have their own list of various products. Here is a short list to get you started.

Ruby Laser – the oldest and therefore the most outdated.  It all started here when the only people that could get the treatments were those of dark hair and light skin.  Even sun tanned patients were not able to use this presses. Compared to today, it only covered small areasso has pretty much been replaced by newer method s in recent  years.

Alexandrite Laser – This one is popular because it is fast and can cover large areas. It is still intended for light to moderately dark skin types.

Diode Laser -  Fast and meant for larger areas like the Alexandrite Laser but more effective on dark skin and is less effective on lighter, finer hair.

Long pulse Nd:Yag laser – Can be safely used in all skin types. Large areas to be treated quickly due to the fast reputation rates. Although that by comparison it does create a little more discomfort.

(IPL) Intense Pulsed Light Devices – These are not laser at all, but “laser equivalents”.   in the sense that they use the same concept of selective photothermolysis to accomplish hair removal.  Photothermolysis is also used to remove tattoos. With IPL you can “tune in” to the color you want to attack on the skin. This method requires a far greater skill level then the standard laser to remove hair.

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