Proof that IPL does remove hair permanently and with 100% clearance This lady had a series of six IPL sessions on her axilla (armpits) around 18 years ago, in 2007. Her skin was cooled using ice packs for more than two minutes. She said the cooling was a bit ‘painful’, but only for a short… Continue reading IPL does remove hair, very effectively…
Tag: beauty
Why we must use HIGHER fluences on darker skins…
When treating skin with lasers/IPLs we are often told that darker skin tones must be treated with lower fluences. This is wrong! Our skin tones come from the concentration of melanin in the epidermis – mostly in the basal layer in lighter tones. In darker skins, the melanosomes may be found throughout the epidermis, not… Continue reading Why we must use HIGHER fluences on darker skins…
Which are the most ‘aggressive’ wavelengths?
Someone recently asked me ‘which is the most aggressive wavelength for the skin?’ That’s interesting question… We should first start by identifying which wavelengths we need to consider. In many skin treatments we use visible and near-infrared light – from around 400 nm up to 1064 nm (Nd:YAG) or even 2940 nm (erbium:YAG). CO2 lasers… Continue reading Which are the most ‘aggressive’ wavelengths?
Synchronised hair growth vs paradoxical hypertrichosis
These days, we see many claims of ‘paradoxical hypertrichosis’. Most of the time, these claims are inaccurate – they are not seeing this at all. So, what do these terms actually mean? Let’s define these two terms… Paradoxical hypertrichosis PH (I can’t be bothered writing this out all the time!) occurs when hairs are observed… Continue reading Synchronised hair growth vs paradoxical hypertrichosis
Who needs to cool the skin before lasering????!!!
I just read a comment from a laser hair removal practitioner who was told, by a client, that she had been in another clinic and told that the “results would be better” if she opted not to use the cryogen. In other words, no skin cooling! Clearly that laser tech does not understand what is… Continue reading Who needs to cool the skin before lasering????!!!
New edition of my book chapter on laser/IPL hair removal – available now!
I finally received the printed copies of my new edition of the “hairy” chapter. This edition has nearly 100 more pages than the 1st edition. (305 pages in this edition compared with ‘only’ 219 in the first!!) More info on… the timings between treatment sessions; the details on the various stages of the anagen growth… Continue reading New edition of my book chapter on laser/IPL hair removal – available now!
PMU inks – what is in them?
I recently came across an excellent book called “PMUni Colourant Manual” by Jasmine Diebelius which delves into the world of PMU inks and their constituents. In it, she indicates the pigments used to formulate many commonly-used PMU inks. This has proved very interesting to me, because of the ramifications for laser removal. In one section,… Continue reading PMU inks – what is in them?
Should we wax or pluck before laser/IPL hair removal? The science…
This is an interesting question. Virtually everyone’s initial response would be a resounding “NO”. “Why should we? We would be removing the target we are trying to destroy!!” Well, yes, of course. That’s obvious. Except, it isn’t… A telogen hair, about to transition into anagen 1. To answer this question properly, we need to look… Continue reading Should we wax or pluck before laser/IPL hair removal? The science…
Fluence, pulsewidths, temperatures and cellular denaturation
This topic is very poorly understood. How does fluence and pulsewidth relate to cellular denaturation – or, ‘cooking’ of the cells. I’m going to portray this in a series of graphs – I hope this works… When we fire light energy into the skin, we can generate some heating, if there is something in there… Continue reading Fluence, pulsewidths, temperatures and cellular denaturation
Hair removal – how does fluence relate to depth?
We all know that light energy can kill hair follicles. It has been around since about 1996. But, many people still don’t understand the relationship between fluence and depth in the skin. Let’s begin with fluence – what is it? Simply put, fluence is just the concentration of light energy on the skin surface. If… Continue reading Hair removal – how does fluence relate to depth?
Mike Murphy's Blog 