You just need that little bit of hair inside the follicle for it to work. And it's just unnecessary heat being delivered to the surrounding areas. When you have long hairs that are above the skin surface, they're going to absorb heat as well. In fact, we often ask patients to shave the day before, because the less hair that's sticking out from the skin, the less of a source it is to be heated up. You just need a hair that has been generated or begun to grow within the follicle. Patients are instructed to avoid waxing, tweezing, threading, electrolysis-anything that is removing the hair from the follicle-for at least two weeks.īut, unlike waxing or threading, laser hair removal doesn't require a lot of hair. But most patients tolerate it, because they are highly motivated by outcomes. Typically, a back takes a solid 30 minutes, the legs take about 20 to 30 minutes, and the bikini area can be done in about 10 minutes. The larger the area that you're treating, such as a man's back versus an armpit, the longer the treatment time, and the greater the discomfort. I liken it to a semi-hot rubber band, and once the feeling has passed, it's passed. We tell patients that the discomfort is fleeting. Age/Sun spots before and after treatment with the 755nm Alexandrite laser.įor laser hair removal, we offer use of a topical anesthetic that a patient can apply about an hour before treatment to make it more tolerable. We typically treat at one-month intervals, but there are areas where the hair cycle tends to be a little bit longer, such as the lower legs where you can generally wait up to two months in between treatments.įigure 1. We never promise anything, but we can tell patients what the averages are. And other areas may be more challenging, requiring more than the average number of treatments. Of course, some areas tend to respond more quickly than others, requiring fewer treatments. Typically, patients are treated at one-month intervals for five to seven treatments. More often than not, patients are extremely happy with the outcome in terms of achieving close to, if not permanent, dark hair reduction. So, in my ethnically-diverse practice in South Florida, we are fortunate enough to basically be able to offer laser hair removal to all of our patients. You don't want to disrupt pigment and cause hypo- or hyperpigmentation after the treatment. You want to protect everyone's overlying skin. This is because the longer the wavelength of light, the less likely you are to disrupt the pigment in the overlying skin, and you're able to penetrate deeply enough to really focus on the hair follicle, delivering that energy to the bulb of the hair follicle. For patients who have the darkest skin type, or who have underlying sun damage, or have been out in the sun tanning, or who I know will be outside in the sun, I have the option of using the 1064nm Nd:YAG with great safety. And, as a physician in South Florida, the fact that I can also treat with a 1064nm Nd:YAG with great success with any skin type is a benefit. But for the past 13 years, the majority of my patients that have Fitzpatrick Skin Types 1-3 have been so pleased with treatment with the 755nm laser of the GentleMax Pro. Intense pulsed light for laser hair removal just wasn't effective enough. In the past, we often heard how frustrated patients and consumers were with laser hair removal because they did not get the results they hoped for after several treatments. It's great for experienced physicians who can adjust settings and treatment parameters based on their personal experience and preferences, as well as for new users who can effectively treat patients following Candela's suggested parameters. Also, the platform is very user-friendly and efficacious. For me, it's about consistency and reliability. The GPro system, in my practice, is a go-to for laser hair removal, pigmented lesions, and small vascular lesions. I've been using this device for about two years, but have worked with the GentleLase Pro and GentleYag Pro, which together comprise the GentleMax Pro, for about 13 years. The GentleMax Pro System (GPro System) is a dual wavelength laser platform that combines a fast and powerful 755nm Alexandrite laser with an equally powerful 1064nm Nd:YAG laser for high performance treatment capabilities in terms of speed, efficacy, ease-of-use, performance, proven results, and patient satisfaction.
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