A high power laser enables us to use very short pulses to remove hair.  This heats the hair very quickly to the therapeutic temperature and then we stop delivering more energy (heat).   This traps the heat in the hair and as a result we typically deliver less than half the energy that older lasers because we are mainly heating the hair and not the surrounding skin.

The skin is heated but it is much more transparent to the laser light and so the energy that does not strike the hair is dissipated over a much larger volume.  The skin is also being cooled by the highly efficient chilled  sapphire treatment tip.

Light hair has less of the target melanin, which is what absorbs the light energy.  The less melanin there is the higher the power needs to be.  A high power hair removal laser like the Quantum 2 is approximately 550% higher power than the previous generation and is effective on much lighter hair.

One limitation is that the hair must always be darker than the skin.

Grey hair has patches of melanin and parts of the hair has little or no melanin.  Therefore the darker patches of melanin absorb the energy far better and if there is sufficient melanin in part of the hair it can be removed effectively.  However, there are limits and for instance white hair does not respond.

There is a fundamental rule that the hair needs to be darker than the skin and the darker the hair is compared to the skin colour the easier it is to remove the hair.  Most people with darker skin types also tend to have very dark hair.  In this situation we are able to remove the hair comfortably due to the excellent contact cooling of the sapphire treatment tip and different machine settings.

Generally this is not a concern for lighter skin types.  Darker skin types can be more prone to pigmented changes.  We will endeavour to avoid pigment changes by:

a) Setting the machine according to your skin type

b) Conducting a patch test to assess your skin sensitivity and to ensure we have the correct operating parameters

c) If for any reason we think there is a reasonable chance you may potentially experience a pigment change we would prescribe a pre-treatment course of melanin suppressants.

d) We will take additional time to ensure the treatment are is sufficiently cooled before delivering the laser energy.

Should any pigment change occur is is far more likely that it will be an increase in pigmentation  (hyperpigmentation).  This is usually temporary and the skin typically returns to normal in 2-3 months.

Based upon a combination of experience and the built in protocols our therapist will be able to start close to the optimum settings to remove your hair.  We would tend to start slightly below the optimum setting and increase after each pulse until we are at the optimum point of effective hair removal and comfortable treatment.

With the latest lasers hair removal should in most cases be genuinely pain free and that is one of our objectives.

Generally no sun exposure for 2 weeks after treatment (and 2 weeks before the next)

Also always wear at least an SPF 30 sun screen when outside.

Not before the initial patch test so that we can assess the hair accurately.

There after it will certainly be far better if you can shave the area to be treated not more than 24 hours before the next appointment.

Do not use any other form of hair removal within 2 weeks of starting the treatment course or during it.