Womens Health in the News

Intense pulse light therapy is a non evasive type of surgery that uses a beam of pulsed light to improve the appearance of rosy cheeks, thread veins in the legs, port wine stains, facial veins and facial lines and wrinkles. The procedure is often called photo rejuvenation and usually consists of a series of intense pulse light therapies over a set period of weeks in order to gain the maximum benefit.

How does the process work?

The principle of the surgery works virtually identical to that of using lasers in cosmetic surgery, the light energy is converted to heat energy and this heat causes damage to the specific targeted area of the skin. The main difference between the laser and IPL is that there are many wavelengths instead of just one in laser therapy, with most systems relying on the refining of the energy output for the treatment of specific areas.

This type of surgery is called a non-ablative resurfacing technique, which means that is specifically targets the lower layers of skin without touching the top layers in any way. There are a wide range of IPL machines and they are used for certain problems and many patients can have this type of procedure done in their lunch break and return to work immediately afterward.

What does the treatment involve and are there any side effects?

The surgeon or doctor should have outlined the procedure to you at your initial consultation and you should have discussed your expectations of the procedure with them. The surgeon or doctor should have explained that the treatment is fairly straightforward but there are however certain precautions that you should take after the procedure.

• Avoid skin exposure to the sun before and after the treatment.
• Although an anaesthetic usually isn’t needed a topical one may be used.
• Sessions normally last around 20 minutes with 4 to 6 sessions being needed every 3 to 6 weeks to achieve the desired effects.
• Most patients can return to work straight after the treatment.

The side effects of the procedure are usually minimal but can include

• Slight pain during the treatment.
• Skin may be a little sore and pink after the treatment.
• You could have the sensation of mild sunburn after the treatment.
• Very rarely slight blistering can occur.
• Slight bruising occurs in roughly 10% of those treated.
• Hair loss can occur in rare cases.

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1. Skin resurfacing