Cosmetic Surgery & Beauty Magazine #70
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feature<br />
LED therapy<br />
Treatment with light emitting diodes (LED) delivers light<br />
at certain wavelengths to stimulate cellular activity and<br />
collagen production in the dermis. This delivers an antiageing,<br />
rejuvenating effect, and LED treatment is often<br />
recommended before and after surgery, as well as a<br />
standalone skin revitalisation treatment.<br />
It uses different wavelengths to increase blood flow to<br />
the skin, accelerate cellular turnover and address specific<br />
concerns such as acne or pigmentation.<br />
An is a shallower, gentler treatment than IPL, and is<br />
often used for collagen boosting and rejuvenating the skin.<br />
LEDs are very small light bulbs that, in contrast to<br />
ordinary incandescent bulbs, don’t get especially hot and<br />
don’t burn out. LEDs have been found to trigger natural<br />
chemical processes inside the cells, boosting the body’s<br />
own production of collagen, which make them particularly<br />
useful for skin rejuvenation.<br />
During treatment, certain light wavelengths are used to<br />
cause different reactions in the skin. Infrared light deeply<br />
penetrates the dermis and stimulates blood flow and<br />
collagen rebuilding in the skin’s deeper layers. Blue light,<br />
which is a shorter wavelength, doesn’t penetrate as deeply<br />
and is used for its anti-microbial effect, inhibiting the growth<br />
of acne-causing bacteria.<br />
Photodynamic<br />
therapy<br />
Photodynamic therapy uses a chemical reaction activated<br />
by light energy to selectively destroy specific tissues and<br />
can be used to treat sunspots, certain types of skin cancer,<br />
rosacea, acne and sun-damaged skin.<br />
A photosensitising medication is applied topically on<br />
the skin and a narrow band of light (red or blue light) is<br />
administered to cause a moderately deep exfoliation and<br />
target damaged tissue and sebaceous glands.<br />
When skin is exposed to a light source of an appropriate<br />
wavelength, its photosensitiser molecules are activated to<br />
produce oxygen intermediates that destroy the targeted<br />
cells. Recovery time is around two weeks after each<br />
treatment and usually one to three sessions are required.<br />
Laser therapy<br />
Laser is an acronym for Light Amplification for the Stimulated<br />
Emission of Radiation. Laser light is different to normal<br />
light for many reasons: it travels in a synchronised fashion;<br />
retains its intensity over a long distance; is monochromatic<br />
(of the same wavelength or colour) and can be pulsed.<br />
Laser therapies work by targeting tissue and can be<br />
light-based<br />
therapies reach<br />
much deeper levels<br />
and affect far more<br />
significant changes<br />
than would be<br />
possible with<br />
other cosmetic<br />
treatments<br />
used for a number of treatments, including pigmentation,<br />
scarring, unwanted hair, spider veins, sun-damaged skin,<br />
wrinkle reduction and overall complexion rejuvenation.<br />
The principle behind lasers is light absorption. The same<br />
as a black car will be hotter than a white car because it<br />
absorbs more wavelengths of light, certain target tissues<br />
will absorb certain wavelengths of light more effectively.<br />
As the laser light is monochromatic, the target tissue<br />
will take on maximum absorption while the surrounding<br />
tissues won’t. This allows the target to be isolated<br />
and treated. In other words, the laser emits a single<br />
frequency of light with all the light waves going in the same<br />
direction, allowing the target tissue to absorb the maximum<br />
amount of heat.<br />
The target tissue is all-important when treating skin<br />
problems with a laser. For pigmentation it is melanin; for<br />
spider veins and other vascular conditions it is haemoglobin<br />
(blood); and for wrinkles it is water. Each of these target<br />
tissues absorbs a different wavelength of light, meaning a<br />
different laser is needed for each specific problem.<br />
Recent advances in laser technology mean that laser<br />
skin resurfacing, once reserved for the treatment of severe<br />
conditions such as acne scarring due to the extensive<br />
downtime involved, has become an effective option for<br />
many people seeking reduction of lines and wrinkles and<br />
uneven skin colour, tone and texture.<br />
64 www.cosbeauty.com.au