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The latest lasers and IPL devices are real wonders of technology. They will rejuvenate and smooth the skin, remove unwanted hairs, vascular changes, postoperative scars and discoloration. They are more and more effective and safer, and the side effects after treatments with their use are minimal compared to the effects they bring.
Laser rejuvenation
What is it about:
Laser rejuvenation methods rely on the regeneration of the skin (more precisely: damage to collagen fibers) by heating it or cutting it. Currently, specialists consider the fractional method to be the most popular methods. It is based on the fact that the entire upper layer of the skin is not destroyed, as in the case of traditional laser dermabrasion, but creates a pattern of evenly distributed microthermal zones. The laser light is directed into these zones, which penetrates both the cells of the subcutaneous tissue and the dermis. As the surrounding skin remains intact, healing is quick and the treatment does not cause any visible wounds. Non-laser devices (although often classified as lasers) of the IPL type, the so-called intense light source. They heat up the collagen, as a result of which its fibers shorten and tighten, thanks to which the skin laxity decreases. With their help, photorejuvenation treatments.
Advantages:
Laser treatments stimulate the internal regenerative processes of the skin, which rejuvenates itself in a natural way. The effects are visible a few days after the treatment, but the best results are achieved after 2-3 months. During this period, new collagen fibers are formed, so the supporters of this method can confidently say that they are getting younger day by day. However, the complete smoothing and improvement of skin tension takes place over the course of a year and after a series of treatments.
Disadvantages:
There are patients who complain of an unpleasant stinging and burning sensation (although before the laser treatment, the skin is locally anesthetized with Emla cream and then additionally cooled down). There is redness and swelling after the treatment, which may persist for several days, and the skin may take on a tanned, brownish tinge. So you need to take into account a few days of recovery.
Also read: Laser facial rejuvenation – indications, effects, prices, advantages and disadvantages
Examples of treatments worth paying attention to:
Fraxel Laser re: store – recognized by doctors as a breakthrough device in aesthetic medicine treatments. It allows you to achieve spectacular effects, ensuring complete safety of the treatment and minimizing its side effects. The healing time and subsequent skin regeneration are shorter than when using other technologies.
Fraxel Laser re: pair – enables to achieve results comparable to traditional CO2 lasers for deep ablation, but in a more predictable way.
Effectiveness and price:
Usually, the best results are achieved with a series of 3-5 laser rejuvenation treatments, performed at 2-4-week intervals.
Price: from 700 PLN for a single treatment.
What you should know:
A novelty in laser skin rejuvenation is the emission system of two different wavelengths from the same laser system. This allows for more effective and safe treatments and, what is important for the patient, less painful.
Are you looking for cosmetics for skin rejuvenation? Try a set of rejuvenating cosmetics with snail slime or a rejuvenating serum for all skin types from the Medonet Market offer.
Closing blood vessels and hemangiomas
What is it about:
The laser closure of blood vessels is based on the fact that the laser light activates the natural mechanism of destroying the walls of blood vessels through the blood in them, which, under the influence of heat, coagulates, causing them to tighten from the inside and detach from the network. A laser beam of the appropriate length is absorbed by hemoglobin, which thus produces the necessary heat energy. As a consequence, the vessel walls are sealed and the damaged fragments are removed from the body in metabolic processes. Therefore, closing broken vessels takes place quickly and naturally.
IPL devices work like a laser: they constrict and permanently close broken blood vessels.
Read more: Coagulation (thermolysis) – what is it, what is its use in cosmetology and medicine?
Advantages:
It is a practically painless procedure, you can feel slight stings on the skin, as well as heat, burning and stinging, which also last for an hour after the procedure. In the case of particularly sensitive people, local anesthesia with Emla cream is used or the skin is additionally cooled. These treatments do not require any special preparation from patients.
Disadvantages:
After the treatment, redness, bruising or swelling may appear, which disappear within a few days. The sensitivity of the skin also increases during this time. Usually you have to give up makeup for a day or two and especially protect your skin against external factors, using preparations recommended by your doctor. Visits to the sauna and solarium are prohibited.
Examples of treatments worth paying attention to:
There are plenty of lasers and IPL devices for sealing vessels on the market, for example the Asclepion QuadroStar or the GEM-IPL. More important than the name of the device, however, is its medical (not cosmetic!) Certificate.
Effectiveness and price:
In order for the treatment to give full effects, the treatments must be repeated. Their number can be modified depending on the extent of vascular changes. In the case of IPL devices, a series of 4-6 treatments gives the best results.
Price: from 200 PLN / laser; from PLN 100 / IPL for a single treatment.
What you should know:
With the help of light energy, it is possible to remove vascular changes, flat, cavernous and senile hemangiomas, telangiectasias – dilated capillaries on the skin of the face and legs, light skin damage, leg venous widenings, varicose veins on the legs and haemorrhoids.
Removal of discoloration and scars
What is it about:
Removal of scars and discoloration is done with a laser. Its bundles, selectively applied, reach below the surface of the skin, removing old, damaged cells. The laser can remove postoperative scars, acne scars, reduce the visibility of stretch marks, get rid of discoloration or skin damage caused by exposure to solar radiation. The most popular method is skin fractionation with a Fraxel laser. Melanin changes (i.e. discoloration), the shallowest, closest to the skin surface, can also be removed using an IPL device with an appropriate filter.
Advantages:
Since the skin around the irradiated tissues remains intact during the treatment with the Fraxel laser, healing occurs very quickly. Additionally, Fraxel can be used all over the body. It can be applied to the entire face (including the eyelids), neck, cleavage, hands and any fragment with scars or stretch marks. Convalescence usually takes 5–7 days.
Disadvantages:
Since about 20-25% of the treated skin area is irradiated during a single Fraxel laser treatment, the treatment usually includes several treatments, performed at 2-4-week intervals. It is also quite expensive, and pain-sensitive patients must use local anesthesia of the skin.
Examples of treatments worth paying attention to:
Fraxel Laser re: pair – see description above.
Effectiveness and price:
The best results are achieved with a series of 3-5 treatments, performed at 2-4 week intervals.
Price: from 700 PLN for a single treatment.
What you should know:
Depending on the size of the removed lesions, each procedure lasts from several to several dozen minutes. During the procedure, the patient’s eyes are usually closed and protected with special glasses. The Fraxel laser is approved by the FDA (American Food and Drug Administration), which confirms both the effectiveness and safety of this device.
Check: Melanin – what is it? What is its role in the body?
Unnecessary hair removal
What is it about:
When removing hair, the idea is to selectively act on the skin – transfer heat energy from the laser head to the hair follicle and lead to its destruction without damaging the adjacent tissues. This can be done with both a laser and an IPL device, because in both cases the light emitted by a special head heats the melanin in the hair to destructive temperature. However, during this procedure, it is necessary to select the appropriate wavelength of light (the device must have special filters).
Advantages:
The treatment is quick and safe, and the side effects are minimal. Anyone who has tried to get rid of unnecessary hair (e.g. a mustache) with this method at least once knows that this method is extremely effective, because it destroys the hair bulbs forever. During each epilation treatment (permanent depilation), an average of 20-30% of the hair in the anagen phase is removed. Until recently, it was impossible to remove light, gray hair and epilation on tanned and dark skin, but the latest devices deal with this problem as well.
Disadvantages:
After the treatment, a slight reddening of the skin may occur. The changes disappear on their own in the first days and sometimes even hours after the procedure. They also do not prevent you from returning to your daily activities. You should only avoid direct exposure to the sun and use cosmetics with high protective filters.
Treatments worth attention:
ELOS radiation diode laser – simultaneously uses the energy of light and high-frequency current (RF), which increases the effectiveness and safety of the treatment. It has a built-in mechanism for continuous monitoring of the skin temperature, with automatic interruption of the impulse after reaching a dangerous level, thanks to which the skin heating process is fully controlled by the operator. The length of the epilation treatment depends on the area on which it is performed and the color of the hair. These two conditions also affect the number of treatments.
see also: Sunscreen – how does it work?
Effectiveness and price:
Usually a series of 6-8 treatments is required.
Price: from 200 PLN for a single treatment.
What you should know:
The use of light energy in medicine has been known since the late 80s. In 1990, Shimon Eckhouse and Michaela Kreidel patented the IPL (Intense Pulse Light) technology. From that moment on, better and better design solutions were sought (e.g. larger spot, longer pulse, reuse of reflected photons). In 2000, the ELOS technology was invented, which is still considered to be the safest and most effective technology.
How to recognize a good office?
Dorota Kwiatkowska, MD, Ph.D., a dermatologist, specialist in laser therapy from the Medical Day Spa Skin Clinic in Warsaw, advises you.
The most important rule: laser treatments should be performed by an experienced person. Procedures such as closing vessels, removing discoloration, scar treatment or rejuvenation – always a doctor. In contrast, laser epilation – a trained person (beautician or nurse). We have the right to ask a doctor about his specialization, professional experience, and the number of treatments performed.
In some offices, in visible places, personal certificates are placed, confirming the skills of people working there. Each procedure should always be preceded by a consultation, during which reliable and comprehensive information is provided about the procedure itself and the equipment with which it will be carried out. Doubts should be raised by declarations and assurances such as: “we will definitely remove scars, discoloration and the like”.
Text: Anna Niewiadomska. Consultation: Dorota Kwiatkowska, MD, PhD, dermatologist, laser therapy specialist from the Medical Day Spa Skin Clinic in Warsaw.
Source: Let’s live longer