What is laser hair removal and its treatment and procedure?
If you’re not happy with shaving, tweezing, or waxing to remove unwanted hair, laser hair removal can be a good option to be considered.
How does laser hair removal work?
Laser hair removal is a medical procedure that uses a concentrated beam of light (laser) to remove unwanted hair.
During laser hair removal, a laser emits a light that is absorbed by the pigment (melanin) in the hair. The light energy is converted to heat, which damages the tube-shaped sacs within the skin (hair follicles) that produce hairs. This damage inhibits or delays future hair growth.
Hair color and skin type influence the success of laser hair removal. The basic principle is that the pigment of the hair, but not the pigment of the skin, should absorb the light. The laser should damage only the hair follicle while avoiding damage to the skin. Therefore, a contrast between hair and skin color — dark hair and light skin — results in the best outcomes.
The risk of damage to skin is greater when there is little contrast between hair and skin color, but advances in laser technology have made laser hair removal an option for people who have darker skin. Laser hair removal is less effective for hair colors that don’t absorb light well: gray, red, blond and white. However, laser treatment options for light-colored hair continue to be developed.
Laser hair removal procedure
Before Procedure
Right before the treatment, your doctor will provide thorough preparation instructions. Following these instructions improves the effectiveness of the procedure and reduces the risk of side effects. Here are some common instructions:
- Stay out of the sun for a few days before the procedure. Laser hair removal shouldn’t be performed on tanned skin.
- Avoid irritating the skin.
- Stay away from waxing and plucking.
- Try not to take anti-inflammatory drugs that may increase bleeding, such as aspirin.
- If you have an active infection, such as a cold sore or bacterial skin infection, the procedure should not be performed.
Additionally, if you have dark skin you might be recommended to apply a skin-bleaching compound to the treatment area.
During The Procedure
At the beginning of the procedure, a medical specialist (a physician, physician assistant, or registered nurse) cleans the treatment area. If the area is particularly sensitive, numbing gel can be applied. During the procedure, everyone in the room needs to wear special protective eyewear to prevent eye damage from the laser.
Once the numbing gel kicks in, the medical specialist focuses a beam of high-energy light at the desired area. The bigger the area you would like treated, the longer the procedure takes. Small areas can take as little as a couple of minutes while larger areas such as the chest can take an hour or more.
Some patients report a sensation similar to a rubber band snapping or a sunburn-like sting. As the hair vaporizes from the energy of the laser, there can be a sulfurous smell from the smoke puffs. You might notice redness and swelling for the first few hours after laser hair removal.
Laser hair removal usually requires a series of two to six treatments. The interval between treatments will vary depending on the location. On areas where hair grows quickly, such as the upper lip, the treatment will need to be repeated in four to eight weeks. On areas of slow hair growth, such as the back, the treatment might be every 12 to 16 weeks.
What about home lasers?
In recent years, lasers that can be used at home for hair removal have become available. These devices might cause modest hair reduction. But there are no large studies how effective these devices are compared to the one in the clinic or hospitals.
Additionally, the Food and Drug Administration considers these home laser hair removal devices to be cosmetic, not medical, which means they don’t get the same level of scrutiny as other medical devices. Currently, there haven’t been large, long-term studies on how safe and effective the home machines are.
If you choose to use a home laser hair removal device, follow the instructions that come with the device to help reduce the risk of injury, especially eye injuries.
In case if you are thinking about to go for Laser Hair Removal Treatment right away then give us a call. We are specialized in all Skin Treatments including laser hair removal. We are Nubello Aesthetic Clinic and have a team of hair and skin experts who can assist you with the requisite treatment for laser hair removal in Navi Mumbai and Mumbai.
