Beauty - IPL&LaserAcne Treatments. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Clinical efficacy
Anyone can be affected by Acne. As a skin specialist you will know that there are many triggers ranging from increased levels of testosterone and female hormones to genetics, stress, nutritional deficiency, certain medications and, commonly with older people, smoking.
Each of these triggers causes the sebaceous glands to produce too much sebum, which is created naturally to lubricate the hair and skin. This excess sebum combines with dead skill cells to plug the follicle.
If the pore is open, these plugged follicles will present as blackheads; if the plug is under the skin, a whitehead will form. If Propionibacterium Acne (P. acnes) bacteria (which live at the base of each hair follicle and flourish under the low oxygen conditions created by the plug), are present, then Acne is formed. These bacteria infect the plugged follicles leading to the formation of painful nodules and cysts. The skin condition is exasperated by the body’s natural defence mechanism which sends white blood cells to clear the infection, leaving the skin red and itchy from the flush of blood.
Commonly, Acne is considered as a facial condition, but we all know that it can occur on any part of the skin; on the scalp and hairline, on the back, neck, décolleté, arms and buttocks.
Approaching 85% of 12 to 24 year olds develop the disorder, and according to Emma Mackintosh of Naturastudios: “Nearly 30% of women over the age of 20 experience some form of Acne.” In fact, more than 80% of cases of adult Acne occur in women. With this in mind, it’s perhaps not surprising that over a $100 million a year is spent on over-the- counter Acne treatments (
share.com).
Whilst the leading skin care houses offer topical solutions ranging from daily products to help reduce inflammation, control oil, purify skin etc. to in-salon
34 Approaching 85% of 12 to 24 year olds develop active Acne, caused by a whole range of triggers.
treatments to drain pustules and calm irritated skin, introducing clients to more advanced treatments utilising the latest technologies in Lasers and Intense Pulsed Light (IPL) offers a highly effective treatment alternative for active Acne, delivering results in a relatively short space of time. The pulsed delivery of these technologies means that tissue surrounding the Acneic infection is undamaged by the light source, whilst the scarring caused by previous Acne breakouts can also be treated through the rejuvenative effects of the light.
Light sources
Lasers are a form of electromagnetic radiation and emit light through a process of optical amplification. There are a number of different Lasers used to treat Acne and Acne scarring, the most common being Pulsed Dye Laser at a wavelength of 595 nm, Nd:YAG laser systems treating both active Acne infections and Acne scars, and Er:YAG Laser for resurfacing to reduce scarring.
Diode Laser with a wavelength near 1450 nm treats active Acne, Radio Frequency Laser uses a different wavelength of electromagnetic radiation to treat Acne and Acne scarring whilst Carbon Dioxide Laser is generally used for Acne scarring but can also be used to target excess sebum production. Alexandrite Laser may be used for problems associated with scarring, but is not often used to treat active Acne or specific Acne scarring.
Intense Pulsed Light, referred to as IPL, uses a broad spectrum light source, with a general spectral range of 515 to 1200 nm, which can be narrowed as required to target specific structures and chromophores, seeking out over-active sebaceous glands and destroying P. Acnes.
Extensive research has taken place into the effectiveness of Laser and pulsed light on treating active Acne, preventing Acne scarring and treating existing Acne scars.
The Clinical Study and Evaluation of Treatment of Face Acne Vulgaris with Intense Pulsed Light, conducted by Li Jiang et al at Zhong Guan Cun Hospital, Beijing, assessed the efficacy of Intense Pulsed Light on facial Acne using the Ellipse I²PL. One hundred and sixteen patients with facial Acne were treated with five IPL treatments; results showed 85.4% had better than 30%clearance and 41.4%better than 60%clearance after five treatments. The study revealed a low re-occurrence rate, and concluded that the system was an efficient alternative to oral medication for the treatment of Acne.
The combination of Laser and Radio Frequency has also been scientifically proven as effective in the treatment of active Acne. In 2005, the Journal of Cosmetic and Laser Therapy published a study by Prieto, Zhang and Sadick in which it was found that after using Syneron Medical’s Aurora AC device (a combination of pulsed light and RF energy) to treat selected patients, the mean lesion count was reduced by 47% (p < 0.05) after eight treatments. The percentage of follicles with perifolliculitis (inflammation around the follicles) decreased from 58%to 33%, sebaceous gland areas decreased from 0.092 mm2 to 0.07 mm2
, and heat shock protein 70
and procollagen-1 expressions did not change.
So with today’s cutting-edge technology now available to businesses such as yours, take a look at your options for introducing what could be life changing treatments into your salon…
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