The most favorable results have been achieved by applying laser treatment in
the early stages of hair growth (known as the anagen phase). It is during
this brief window of opportunity when follicles are small, weak, shallow and
highly vulnerable to trauma.
To assure that you are working with new anagen
growth, it is recommended for you to administer a manual follicle
extraction (depilatory) to the treatment area (by tweezing or waxing) prior
to administration of epilation.
Allow 2-3 weeks for new hairs to begin surfacing before moving on to the next
step.
At
this time, there should be growth emerging from the skin which will look somewhat like the graphic at
left. The lightly-colored pointed tip is what
you should use to determine which hairs are anagen.
Those with jagged or blunt-ended tips are late anagen
or catagen phase
follicles and do not respond well to laser treatment or electrolysis of any kind. Just pluck
these hairs to get them out of the way. They will eventually return in the
desirable phase for destruction (6-8 weeks).
To begin the treatment procedure,
it
will be necessary to remove all hair from the area by tweezing or waxing.
The use of a waxing kit or wax strips (as shown in the picture) is encouraged.
This step is crucial to open the follicle pore for the carbon dye
application.
Using
a cotton-tipped applicator, completely cover the treatment area with the
special carbon-dye included in your kit. Massage the dye into the follicle
pore with a firm downward circular motion. Repeat 2-3 times to saturate the
follicle pore. Use an alcoholbased wipe to lightly clean
the excess dye from the surface of the skin. At this stage of the
pre-treatment preparation you should have
all desired follicles visibly highlighted with a dark
spot.
Focus
the laser at the
treatment area. If you are
using a laser with a pin-point output, match
the angle of growth and focus directly down the highlighted pore. If using an
elliptical or square beam, match the angle of growth and scan slowly across
the treatment area. The laser will not react with the skin. As soon as it
passes over the pore you
will see a brilliant
flash of light accompanied with some vapor. You may wish to advise
the patient to expect a brief zap (or pinch sensation) while the photons
cauterize the pore.
If your
patient has a low tolerance for discomfort, you may wish to apply an OTC
topical anesthetic prior to treating (such as Dermal-Plast®). Continue
to hold the beam over
the pore until all activity ceases. Move on to the next follicle, or
continue to scan across the treatment area until the photon reaction
diminishes.
After
the desired area has
been completed, apply
a cold pack. This will
cool the dermis and sooth any uncomfortable neural activity.
Apply the post-treatment
gel and advise the patient not to pick or scratch the area. The dermis will
show some trauma in the form of eurythmia (reddening) which may last 12-24
hours.
Schedule the patient for their next treatment in 3 weeks. By then some of
the new anagen hairs will be surfacing. Hair growth activity will
diminish substantially after each application.