After several laser treatments, most patients experience permanent hair reduction – far more effectively than traditional methods like shaving, plucking or waxing.
Prior to recently, people with darker skin were not recommended for laser hair removal; however, recent developments have made this possible. Lasers work best when there is an obvious contrast between hair color and skin tone.
Theodore Maiman
Theodore Harold Maiman is widely recognized for inventing the laser. Born in Los Angeles on July 11, 1927, Maiman served in World War II before attending University of Colorado Boulder to earn a B.S. in Engineering Physics under Willis Lamb’s tutelage at Colorado Boulder and Stanford Universities respectively before working at Hughes Research Laboratories of California post-graduation.
Hughes hired Maiman in the late 1940s for a project involving laser technology. Given a generous budget and unrestricted freedom in choosing equipment to use, Maiman developed a laser that could be used permanently for hair removal.
Maiman successfully developed the first laser in 1960 – a ruby laser. This device used light energy to emit destructive beams that destroyed hair follicles, effectively stopping further growth of hair strands. However, its initial success was limited because the process was painful and took years for permanent results to take effect.
In the 1970s, more efficient and safer methods of hair removal were created. Laser technology could be used to effectively destroy hair follicles; however, darker skin types could absorb too much heat for it to work correctly; so Harvard dermatologist Thomas Fitzpatrick developed a scale to determine which patients were suitable for laser therapy treatment.
By 1983, scientists had perfected the duration of laser beams to safely destroy hair follicles without harming surrounding tissues, and use this technique for other cosmetic purposes such as tattoo removal and pigmented lesions.
Since Maiman’s discovery of lasers, they have been put to many different uses such as surgery, welding, special effects, barcode scanners, fiber optics, teeth whitening, CD/DVD reading, etc. In honor of his groundbreaking discovery he received the Oliver Buckley Condensed Matter Prize from the American Physical Society as well as membership into the National Inventors Hall of Fame. Furthermore, he founded and was president of Korad Corporation a laser manufacturer before consulting in high technology industries as a consultant.
nD:YAG
Laser hair removal had traditionally been seen as more of a luxury than an affordable cosmetic procedure, however now that COVID-19 vaccines have been released and businesses adjust to the New Normal, people can once more indulge in some of their past luxuries like aesthetic treatments and salon days that help boost confidence in themselves – including laser hair removal as one popular way of permanently eliminating unwanted body hair.
Wax strips were first attempted as an effective and fast method of permanent hair reduction in the 1960s, however this technique proved unreliable, leaving many patients with damaged skin after treatment was complete. Over time more reliable laser hair removal systems such as ruby and alexandrite lasers were created; however, these were only ever short-term solutions without enough heat energy being delivered to permanently destroy hair follicles and therefore were considered temporary solutions.
Not until the early 1980s were scientists finally successful in creating a laser that effectively destroyed hair follicles without harming surrounding skin, revolutionizing hair removal to become significantly faster, less painful, and cheaper than before. This invention revolutionized hair removal into something much faster, less painful, and cheaper than had been available previously.
Since 2004, more consumers have turned to laser hair removal as a safe and permanent method for getting rid of unwanted hair. While other methods exist (e.g. epilation, shaving, chemical depilatories, waxing, electrolysis and eflornithine cream), only laser hair removal offers safe, pain-free and quick hair removal solutions.
At Laser Hair Removal Clinics of Virginia Beach we use multiple lasers for hair removal; the most effective of which is the Neodymium-Doped Yttrium Aluminium Garnet (nD:YAG) laser. With its long wavelength and ability to penetrate deep into skin layers and target blood supply sources that feed hair follicles directly, this device effectively destroys them once hair has stopped growing back from them. During your consultation session we will identify which laser will best meet your needs as well as any health or hormonal factors which might impact results and discuss any underlying conditions which might influence how results might play out for you personally.
Alexandrite
Laser hair removal has quickly become one of the most sought-after beauty treatments, as a non-invasive and painless means of permanently reducing unwanted body hair. Its popularity lies primarily with its more permanent results than traditional methods like shaving, waxing or electrolysis; in addition, sessions typically only take minutes per session depending on where on the body it’s performed.
The first laser device was invented in the 1960s, yet it took decades before it became an accepted hair removal technique. At first, using a ruby laser could reduce hair growth but was damaging to skin and only targeted one follicle at a time. By early 1980s however, scientists were able to develop an alexandrite laser which was safer and more effective at targeting individual follicles without harming surrounding tissues.
These lasers use selective photothermolysis to target melanin pigment (dark coloration) in hair follicles and destroy them, with darker skin tones being more melanin-rich than lighter areas, making laser energy easier for them to absorb than lighter skin areas; hence the difficulty when it comes to hair removal with dark skin tones.
These devices use pulse durations and different wavelengths of light to safely deliver consistent results without harming skin tissue around follicles, making them the ideal solution for salons seeking fast and efficient hair removal treatments. Today there are numerous FDA-approved lasers and energy-based devices specifically approved for hair removal such as ruby, alexandrite diode neodymium:yttrium-aluminum-garnet (Nd:YAG) lasers as well as intense pulsed light devices.
Laser hair removal has rapidly gained in popularity worldwide as it permanently reduces unwanted body hair. It offers an effective alternative to more traditional, painful methods like waxing, shaving and threading while offering chemical-free alternatives for people who cannot tolerate them.
Pulsed Light
Laser hair removal is a noninvasive and permanent method to permanently eliminate unwanted hair. It has become increasingly popular due to new fashion trends requiring showing more skin, and because it is faster, less painful, and cheaper than waxing. Although invented during the 1960s, its proper implementation took decades – scientists finally mastering how to combine wavelength and pulse duration correctly for targeting pigmented cells effectively – which became known as selective photothermolysis; today this form of laser hair removal forms its foundation.
Laser hair removal technology was first pioneered with a ruby laser, but its results weren’t very effective, damaging surrounding skin in the process. After transistorized equipment became widely available for development of more reliable versions of this treatment method. By the 1990s it had become popular as an efficient hair removal method and its popularity has only grown ever since then.
A laser light beam is passed over the skin and absorbed by dark pigments such as melanin. This heats up basal stem cells in the hair follicle and destroys them, stopping future hair growth. Unfortunately, however, this treatment only works on certain colors of hair; other varieties will continue to emerge regardless.
Although laser hair removal is generally safe and quick, some patients may find the process uncomfortable. To address this, many lasers offer cooling systems to ease discomfort and avoid heat damage. Furthermore, certain lasers offer multiple wavelengths so they can treat multiple hair colors and skin types effectively – for instance Candela’s GentleMax Pro 17 laser device can use either 755nm alexandrite or 1064nm nd:YAG light wavelengths simultaneously for instance.
Although laser hair removal has become more and more popular, some misconceptions still surround its use. Some believe the treatments to be permanent; this is not necessarily the case as younger patients may experience re-growth of hair follicles as they get older; therefore laser hair removal should only be seen as a long-term solution and not one with lasting effects.
