LASER HAIR REMOVAL

What is laser hair removal?

Laser Hair Reduction is soon becoming one of the most prevailing and commonly used procedures. In Laser Hair Reduction, through the skin, a laser beam traverses to individual hair follicles. Future hair growth is inhibited when the intense heat of the laser damages the hair follicle. Laser Hair Reduction is most effective for people who have light skin and dark hair.

What are the benefits of laser hair removal?

Hair free skin- no need of waxing, threading or bleaching.
 Only the coarse hair is targeted. Hence, leaving the surrounding skin undamaged.
 Helps to treat ingrowth.
 No pain and no side effects while removing hair.

What are the pre-procedure instructions?

 Avoid sun exposure like a Sun holiday for 1 – 2 weeks before and after doing laser, because on tanned skin the efficacy of the laser reduces.
 Apply a good Sunscreen every 4 – 5 hours.
 Limit plucking, waxing and shaving in between the laser sessions.
 No facial, bleaching or any other skin treatment should be done for 1 week before the laser session.

What to expect during the laser treatment?

Laser hair reduction requires comprehensive training and understanding of the laser physics. After shaving the area, depending upon the light source, the patient and the technician must wear eye protection. Later, in order to protect the outer layer of the skin, a cold jelly is applied to the skin which will help the laser light to penetrate the skin and target only the hair melanin. Various parameters are set for the laser machine depending upon the thickness of the hair and the color of the skin. The jelly is removed after the procedure is completed. If the skin is red then ice packs can be given. After the laser session, slight redness or erythema may be present, it is desirable and will taper off in sometime.

What happens after the treatment?

You may experience what seems to be regrown hair, three to seven days after the treatment. The hair is not really re- growing, it is actually just being shed. It is permissible to shave the area but one must not wax or pluck the hair between the treatments.

How many treatments are needed?

All the hair is not growing actively at the same time. The hair actually goes through three distinct phases: growth, regression and resting. The laser primarily works only on the hair that is principally in the active growth phase. Additional treatments maybe necessary to damage all of the hair follicles in a given area, since other hair will enter this active phase at different times. About 10 - 25% reduction in hair growth can be expected with each treatment. The hair that grows following the treatment tends to be lighter and finer in texture. About 6 - 8 treatments are generally required with ongoing maintenance for some patients.