Living in the Sunshine State, we enjoy the beach and our neighborhood swimming pools all year long. The problem is, overexposure to the sun can accelerate age-related problems with facial skin. Here in Tampa, we specialize in non-invasive cosmetic solutions for wrinkled, brittle, or blemish-pocked skin. IPL laser treatment sessions are popular here, but you may not have heard much about them if you’re just now contemplating cosmetic facial skin treatments.
Also known as intense pulsed light therapy, or IPL, a photofacial is similar to a traditional laser resurfacing procedure, but there’s one major difference. An IPL treatment is non-ablative, meaning that no skin is removed during the procedure. Traditional laser resurfacing involves careful removal of one or more layers of skin. On the other hand, IPL is a specialized treatment that employs the use of broad-spectrum light. A combination of selected wavelengths are used to carefully heat up the skin and kickstart a rejuvenation process.
Is It Laser Treatment?
Although it’s usually referred to as IPL laser treatment, the instrument used isn’t really a laser. It emits tightly focused beams of light, but these beams are made up of several different wavelengths that actually interfere with each other. The light is scattered into tiny pixilated shafts, and these light shafts penetrate through the epidermis without affecting it to any great degree.
The idea is to have darker, more dense tissues absorb the energy instead. When these light beams are pulsed from the instrument, the energy is absorbed by damaged tissues such as blemishes. The capillaries near the surface also absorb some of the energy, and this causes them to shrink in size. Age spots, freckles, and dull, dark dermal tissues also heat up and are slightly damaged.
What’s the Result?
Because the light energy is absorbed deeper down below the epidermis, only the targeted tissues are affected. After a series of treatments, each of which can be completed in just minutes, the collagen in the affected tissues has shrunk to such a degree that the body begins to produce more and more of it. This means suppler skin, a tauter skin surface, and fewer wrinkles.
IPL laser treatments are favored over traditional laser procedures because the treatment is simpler and doesn’t involve any recovery period. It’s easy for our clients to schedule these photofacials around their other activities.
Regular Skin Maintenance
Many of our clients in Tampa choose to incorporate IPL laser treatments into their regular skin care regimen. They schedule follow-up maintenance treatments every so often to maintain their youthful, healthy appearance. It’s much simpler than laser resurfacing and other treatments.
The instruments used today can be finely calibrated to account for a good deal of melanin in the skin. This makes IPL laser treatment available to a larger segment of the population than was the case just a decade ago.
To find out if you’re a suitable candidate for this popular cosmetic skin rejuvenation procedure, schedule a consultation at The Mack Cosmetic Center in Tampa. Contact us today to book an appointment!