People often ask my advice on treatments which don’t appear to have worked too well. Either there’s too little reaction in each session or no result after a number of repeat sessions. They don’t know why and turn to me for help.
I am always happy to help where possible but to do so, I need some basic info.
Obviously, knowing what they’re treating is a good start. Then I’ll ask which laser/IPL parameters they are using/have used.
For this, I need to know the wavelength, fluence, pulsewidth and spot size, if it’s variable. In the case of diode lasers, knowing the power output is also very useful.
All of these can have an important impact on treatment outcomes.
Unfortunately, in many cases not all of this info is known by the laser/IPL user. Sometimes, it’s merely because they didn’t record that info – sometimes it’s because they don’t have access to it all. Some devices just don’t show this data.
This is where things become ‘tricky’. Without having all of the above info, it can be difficult knowing where the problem lies…
Then it struck me that there are some people carrying out these treatments without knowing the “basic” parameters – wavelengths, fluence, pulsewidth, spot size area and output power (for diode lasers).
These are all important to know, as they all directly affect the final result. In addition, knowing the interval between sessions is useful since this often determines the total number of sessions required.
But…. for example, if the fluence is too low, or the pulsewidth is too long, then the success of the treatment will be limited. In some cases, it will have very little effect.
A big part of the problem is that many users don’t appear to have been properly trained since they often don’t know what these expressions means. In fact, some of the ‘trainers’ don’t seem to know either!!! That’s very disturbing…
It’s also useful to know how the skin has responded, if at all, during previous sessions.
Conclusion
Knowing what you are doing in all these treatments is fundamental. As a consequence, it is important to know what you are actually applying to the skin. Without this information it is very difficult to make alterations if there is no significant clinical response.
Hope this helps,
Mike.
Mike Murphy's Blog 
Hi Mike, I am just reading some of your blogs which has very useful information. I don’t feel in some cases that i am achieving the best results for some clients. The laser I am using is a 3 wave diode laser combined with IPL. I am using the in-motion technique mostly with the diode for hair removal. Some clients notice a difference after the first treatment, for example, chin area on a female using single shots, energy/fluency 75 pulse width 60ms. one male client has had 10 sessions on the beard area, starting every 2 weeks due to active hair follicles (and his compulsive obsession with shaving daily for 2 hours), and now treating every 4 weeks. I’d say there is a reduction of hears around 60%, and majority of hairs still thicker in texture on the chin. I have altered the puled width down to 30ms to heat the hairs for a shorter time and kept the fluency at 75. the spot size i’m using is 15*35mm, the output power is 1000-1600w. I understand we have to look at each persons individual hair growth cycle and also any contributing factors to hair growth, like the male hormone. The higher the fluence the more temperature to destroy the stem cells, i’d like to know more regarding the best pulsed width for different hair textures and colour for best results. i know the best pulsed width is between 10 and 100ms but that is a huge range difference. I do love to hear your expert opinion and discuss with you.
i am planning on joining your zoom master class, you said you have some availability in March and i cant wait
Many thanks
Nicky