Page 145 - Chapter 3 - Laser/IPL Hair Removal

Chapter 3 – Fundamentals of Laser/IPL Hair Removal 2nd Edition
As mentioned previously, pre-cooling the skin has a huge effect on the pain sensations felt by recipients of laser or IPL energy. It makes the whole process much more comfortable, regardless of the device used.
Post-cooling, again with ice, is the best method of extracting unwanted heat energy from the skin. Applying ice-packs for a few minutes after the treatment will remove this heat and significantly minimise any possibilities of thermal tissue damage.
Finally, pre-cooling:
minimises epidermal damage reduces the pain sensation reduces the risk of blistering
and
reduces hyper- and hypo-pigmentation.
Skin Cooling – The proper way to do it
When we target hair follicles, we are deliberately trying to overheat them with light energy. However, less than 10% of the applied light energy actually generates heat in the follicles – the remainder is sloshing around the dermis, looking to “cook” something!
So, we MUST mitigate against this excess heat, otherwise the likelihood of unwanted tissue damage is high.
________________________________________________________________________ 145 Chapter 3, Ed. 2.0 Laser/IPL Hair Removal
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