Hair stimulation following laser and intense pulsed light photo-epilation: Review of 543 cases and ways to manage it

Hair stimulation following laser and intense pulsed light photo-epilation: Review of 543 cases and ways to manage it
27 Dec 2006
Andrea Willey, MD, Jaioae Torrontegui, RN, Jose Azpiazu, MD, Nerea Landa, MD
Lasers In Surgery And Medicine

Summary:

Approximately 10 percent of patients treated for permanent hair removal using laser and intense pulsed light photo-epilation will experience an increase in hair growth, according to study findings published in the April issue of Lasers in Surgery and Medicine.

Andrea Willey, M.D., of Oregon Health & Science University in Portland, Ore., and colleagues studied 543 patients aged 16 to 52 who were treated with between three and 23 sessions of laser and/or intense pulsed light photo-epilation of the beard, neck and chin areas. Treatments were typically performed two to three months apart.

Although ongoing treatments reduced hair growth in 424 patients (70 percent), 44 (8.10 percent) saw no reduction and 57 patients (10.49 percent) experienced an increase in hair growth within and beyond the area treated. The re-grown hair was thicker and darker than the hairs observed at baseline. Patients treated with the alexandrite laser or intense pulsed light were more likely to experience an increase in hair growth than those treated with the Nd:YAG laser.

"Because the terminal hair growth occurred both within the treated areas and also at the periphery of treated areas, it was thought that sub-therapeutic thermal energy delivered to nearby follicles induced terminal hair growth," the authors write.

This article may be viewed in its entirety by subscription or by purchase at the website.