Get Intense with Your Unwanted Hair, Age Spots, and Spider Veins

If you’re looking for a non-invasive, non-ablative way to get rid of unwanted hair and skin spots, you simply need to up your intensity level with Intense Pulsed Light. Intense Pulsed Light (IPL) is offered by Dr. Barrera with different light wavelengths to treat different skin conditions.

What is IPL and what does it work on?

Also called “flashlamp therapy,” IPL uses high-intensity pulses of visible light to improve the appearance of the following skin problems:

  • Vascular lesions including port wine stains, broken facial veins, spider veins, rosacea, and similar problems
  • Freckles and age spots
  • Facial lines and wrinkles
  • Removal of unwanted dark hair

You’ve heard these called IPL photofacials, but the delivery of the light energy is the same. What changes are the wavelengths of light delivered. At Dr. Barrera’s we filter the light wavelengths depending on your treatment needs.

How it works

IPL systems work on the same principles as lasers in that light energy is absorbed by particular target skin cells with color (chromophores). The light energy is converted to heat energy that damages cells in the targeted area. The same thing happens with unwanted hair. The melanin in the hair shaft absorbs the light energy, which converts to heat. This heat travels down the hair shaft into the hair follicle, damging or destroying it and precluding future hair growth.

Dr. Barrera’s IPL system uses filters to refine the energy output for treatment of certain areas. This enables the targeting of specific chromophores.

  • Red handpiece — Reduces unwanted brown or black hairs throughout the body. Usually an initial series of four to five treatments is recommended.
  • Green handpiece — Reduces flushing and spider veins in the face, neck, and décolletage. Also removes brown spots across the body. Brown spots become darker for a week to 10 days before starting to go away.
  • Yellow handpiece — Removes brown spots and reduces brown and black hairs.

Because IPL penetrates deeper into the skin’s dermis layer, rather than treating the epidermis ablatively, the procedure is non-invasive and doesn’t require any recovery time. Results build over time.

Are you tired of those age spots and spider veins? Let’s get rid of them with IPL. Call Dr. Barrera at (713) 468-5200 to schedule an appointment.

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