I have been asked many times in the last few years for a recommendation for an introductory book describing the application of lasers and IPLs in aesthetic treatments. My answer was always the same – “There isn’t one!!” So, I finally took the plunge and decided to write one, with my colleague PA Torstensson. The… Continue reading New Book – Medical/Aesthetic Lasers & IPLs and Skin Treatments
My history in lasers, IPLs and rock ‘n’ roll…
A brief history of my life in medical lasers and IPLs…
The Hair Growth Cycle & Laser/IPL Treatments. When is the ‘best’ time to treat?
Hair grows in a well-known cycle – anagen, catagen and telogen. The ‘active’ growing phase is anagen – during this phase the hair follicle will begin to grow from a single stem cell. The duration of this phase depends on the body location and can range from a few weeks to several years! However, these… Continue reading The Hair Growth Cycle & Laser/IPL Treatments. When is the ‘best’ time to treat?
Why do so many laser/IPL hair removal treatments fail?
Laser/IPL hair removal has been around since the dinosaurs…. Yet, it is still poorly understood and even more poorly delivered! We have read all sorts of nonsense about this topic on the internet. There appears to be a lot of ‘mythconceptions’ out there, which just keep doing the rounds. So, let’s drill down on this.… Continue reading Why do so many laser/IPL hair removal treatments fail?
A ‘Brief Guide’ to some of the more important terms used in medical/aesthetic laser/IPL treatments
We have written a ‘Brief Guide’ to the terms and expression typically used in laser/IPL treatments in our ‘sister’ blog over at ‘The Laser-IPL Guys’ page. Click here to see this post. Ciao for now, Mike.
Back-scattered light from the skin is much more than we think…
My Letter describing back-scattered laser radiation from the skin has been published in the ‘open market’ by Springer! I’m very pleased that they have done this. However, I am now thinking that the levels of back-scattered light are higher than I first thought. The is coming from new work I have been doing looking at… Continue reading Back-scattered light from the skin is much more than we think…
What is it like to ‘sit’ on a photon and be fired into the skin?
Let’s take a ride on a photon. Imagine we can sit on a photon. What would a trip into the skin be like? Well, it might be something like this…. As we leave the laser we will be travelling at nearly the speed of light – that is 30 million kilometres per second! However, as… Continue reading What is it like to ‘sit’ on a photon and be fired into the skin?
How well do you know lasers/IPLs in medical/aesthetic practice?
Why not try our quiz and test your knowledge? Click here for the quiz. All the answers will be in our new book which should released before the end of September… In the meantime, good luck. Ciao, Mike.
How long should you leave between laser tattoo removal treatments?
This is an important question but has not been properly studied clinically (to my knowledge). When my research group first developed the Q-switched ruby laser treatment of tattoos in Canniesburn Hospital, Glasgow, in the early 1980s they established that a minimum four-week period was the optimum time between repeat laser sessions. This became the standard… Continue reading How long should you leave between laser tattoo removal treatments?
Laser-IPL Penetration Depth – a more useful definition
The ‘standard’ definition of penetration depth in skin only considers the incident wavelength and optical properties of the skin. While this may be useful from a physics perspective, it is not particularly useful when considering clinical treatments. A more useful definition must include wavelength, anisotropy, spot diameter and incident fluence. All of these have an… Continue reading Laser-IPL Penetration Depth – a more useful definition
Tattoo removed in just 4 sessions using a QS Nd:YAG at 1064nm
The following is an experiment I carried out to test a theory. A number of experiences had made me think that the time between laser sessions is more important than first thought. My clinical group first developed scar-free laser tattoo removal back in the 1980s in Canniesburn Hospital, Glasgow, Scotland. Back then, we were using… Continue reading Tattoo removed in just 4 sessions using a QS Nd:YAG at 1064nm
Calibrating an IPL device
How do you know what fluence or energy is coming out of your IPL unit? Some devices will have an on-board meter, but many don’t. In that case, you really should get it properly calibrated. You can only do this with an appropriate meter which should be able to measure both the fluence and the… Continue reading Calibrating an IPL device
