Page 76 - LASERS & IPLS IN MEDICAL/AESTHETIC APPLICATIONS

Chapter 1 – Fundamentals of Medical/Aesthetic Lasers and IPLs v1.1
Figure 40: Light may be reflected, absorbed, scattered or transmitted through an object.
Chromophores in the Skin
● Chromophores are elements which absorb light energy.
Skin chromophores include:
Melanin
Tissue water Blood (haemoglobins) Bilirubin Keratin ‘Tattoo inks’
● They usually absorb light across specific wavelength ranges. This property is very useful because it allows us to discriminate between various tissues within the skin.
● By carefully selecting a range of wavelengths we can preferentially heat a target without damaging the adjacent tissue.
● This is known as the principle of Selective Photothermolysis (photo – light, thermo – heat, lysis – change). In skin there are a number of chromophores which have proven to be exceptionally useful for laser/IPL treatment purposes.
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Chapter 1 LEVEL A Fundamentals of Lasers/IPLs
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