All About Laser Hair Removal

Hair removal is one of the many practices done by cosmetic surgeons today which involves the removal of unwanted hair from any part of the body. There are several methods used for hair removal. The most common form of hair removal is by shaving, another is by plucking with the use of tweezers.

Plucking is considered to be long-lasting compared with shaving. This is because shaving only removes the part of the hair above the surface of the skin whereas plucking is the removal of the entire hair, including the part below the skin. These methods are usually done at home. Hair removal techniques that requires clinical settings are those that are usually considered as permanent hair removal methods. One of these methods is with the use of lasers.

Hair removal by laser

Laser hair removal is the removal of hair using lasers and light. According to laser hair removal montclair centers, it was already in practice before it was introduced into the market 20 years later and hair removal by laser has already been very popular. Because of the efficacy of laser hair removal, it is now widely accepted in the dermatology community, and is primarily practiced in almost every dermatology center. The primary principle behind laser hair removal is selective photothermolysis (SPTL). This involves localized damage by selectively heating dark target matter, which is the melanin, in the area that causes hair growth, which is the follicle, without heating the rest of the skin.

Number of sessions

The number of sessions depends on various parameters, including the area of the body treated, skin color, coarseness of hair, and gender. Coarse dark hair on light skin is easiest to treat. Finer hair and hair on darker skin is harder to treat and may require more treatments. According to laser hair removal montclair centers, certain areas (notably men's and women's faces) may require considerably more treatments to achieve desired results. In addition, since hair grows in several phases, and laser can only affect the currently active growing follicles, (anagen), several sessions are needed to kill hair in all phases of growth.

It's important to note that laser does not work on light hair and very fine and vellus hair ("peachfuzz"). Laser hair removal is NOT permanent but it is long term and can be patchy. Electrolysis is the only permanent solution for those types of hair but has shortcomings such as possible scarring, expense, and discomfort, as noted above.

Contradictions of the use

There have been several noted risks in using laser for hair removal. Risks include the chance of burning the skin or discoloring dark skin with the laser, hypopigmentation (white spots), flare of acne, swelling around the follicle, scab forming, and purpura. In some countries, according laser hair removal montclair centers, laser hair removal has not yet been approved for use due to uncertainty about potential side effects.