Lasers were first used for dermatology in the late 1960’s. Epilation by laser was performed experimentally for about twenty years before becoming commercially available in the mid 1990s. Hair removal lasers have been in use since 1997 and the Food and Drug Administration approved it for “permanent hair reduction.”
Laser hair removal is one of several light-based methods for removing hair. The efficacy of laser hair removal is now generally accepted in the dermatology community, and laser hair removal is widely practiced. Many reviews of laser hair removal methods, safety, and efficacy have been published in the dermatology literature.
How does laser hair removal work?
Lasers stop growth of hair from its roots by selectively targeting and heating dark target matter – melanin – in the area that causes hair growth – the follicle – while not damaging the rest of the skin. Light is absorbed by dark objects, so laser energy can be absorbed by dark material in the skin. Melanin occurs naturally in the skin: it gives skin and hair its color. There are two types of melanin in hair: eumelanin (which gives hair brown or black color) and pheomelanin (which gives hair blonde or red color).
Since lasers used for hair removal are designed to target the melanin in the hair, laser hair removal is usually most effective on people with light skin/dark hair combination. Melanin is what gives our hair and skin its color, so the darker it is, the more melanin you have.
To accommodate all skin types, additional laser technology had to be developed.
Today, there are several basic kinds of lasers that are commonly used for removing unwanted hair:
* Ruby Laser
* Alexandrite Laser
* Diode Laser
* Intense Pulsed Light Source
* ND:Yag Laser
Some technologies are more painful than others and some have more long-term effects than their counterparts. Ruby and Alexandrite lasers work best on people with light skin; the Diode laser can sometimes be effective on darker skinned people and the Nd:Yag works well on people with all complexions.
The newcomer to the laser market, the TRIA laser, is the first and only FDA cleared at-home laser for hair removal that enables users to achieve permanent laser hair removal in the privacy of their own home — eliminating the need to ever shave or wax again. TRIA laser was developed by the team of scientists that invented the professional technology in the 1993 . It uses that same laser technology to deliver the same permanent results as those professional devices, which are still considered the gold-standard among dermatologists and plastic surgeons.
Regardless of the type of laser used multiple treatments are necessary to achieve satisfactory results. Hair clearance, after repeated treatments, of 30 to 50% is generally reported 6 months after the last treatment. Patients with dark colored skin can be treated effectively with comparable results to those with lighter colored skin. Although there is no obvious advantage of one laser system over another in terms of treatment outcome (except the Nd:YAG laser, which is found to be less efficacious, but more suited to patients with darker colored skin), laser parameters may be important when choosing the ideal laser for a patient.
Is laser hair removal safe?
This procedure has been around for so long is that it has undergone a great deal of progress from where it first started out. As a result, you no longer have to be concerned about its safety. However if your complexion is dark, one of the possible laser hair removal side effects can be some scarring. That is why it is recommended having the doctor do a “test patch” in an area that can’t be seen and then determining if your skin reacts well.
If you’re considering laser hair removal, be an educated consumer and learn the facts. Ask what kind of technology will be used and whether it is appropriate for your skin type.
Read more on my Laser Hair Removal: cost & facts blog. Also read about Laser Hair Removal Price, Laser Hair Removal For Bikini Line, and other methods of hair removal, such as waxing hair removal.
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