Myths about Beauty Laser devices devices

Myths explained

From the Service Desk of Lasergirl: Martin Fritz, Engineer

One of the most common questions we receive when booking an appointment is about the type of equipment we use at Lasergirl. Customers are well-informed about the available options in the market. We are fortunate to have built strong relationships over the years with genuine manufacturers of beauty devices, allowing us to introduce our own line of equipment in our spas. All these devices are FDA approved or cleared and have received their 510k number.

For skin rejuvenation, the key function of these devices is to deliver energy that creates a controlled injury, enabling the body to heal itself. When an esthetician or certified laser technician activates a laser beam, it relies on the principles of physics, which remain constant. The energy delivered to your skin adheres to these physical laws, and regardless of the brand name on the device, it performs the same function as any other device. What truly matters is the technician's expertise in assessing your skin condition and selecting the appropriate settings for the treatment, a task that no device can accomplish on its own. There are only a few manufacturers of laser tubes and diodes worldwide, with the most renowned being Coherent Laser, a global leader in laser devices based in the US. Other manufacturers, particularly those catering to the beauty industry, are located in Israel and Germany. All our Lasergirl®️ devices utilize laser tubes manufactured in the US and adhere to the highest quality standards and testing.

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An advice from Dr. Carolyne Taylor-Walker  

Lasers are a minefield; I can even get confused when they come up in conversation and have to Google them!!

It appears soooo many exist….. but in reality, there are very few!!

The issue that has led to this confusion lies within the lasers marketing and branding. What is often thrown in our faces is the brand name of Lasers, with each brand name being connected to a result. The problem is a lot of brands are exactly the same laser, which means treatments and results will be exactly the same!

In reality a Laser is simply a wavelength of light. Each laser machine produces a different wavelength of light, and each wavelength of light has a different effect on the skin.

The wavelengths differ in that each wavelength reaches a different depth within the skin or is attracted to a different substance within the skin. For example, one wavelength is attracted to the color red and so would be chosen to treat blood vessels, whilst another wavelength is attracted to a brown pigment so would be chosen to treat skin pigmentation or for the removal of dark hair.

Depth of laser wavelength penetration into the skin.

The picture above may initially be confusing, but it is showing how each wavelength of light from a laser reaches a different depth within the skin. Practitioners use this knowledge of a lasers wavelength to choose the correct one to treat your skin condition of concern. Because each laser emits a different wavelength of light that has a different effect on the skin, you WILL hear about different lasers.

But …….the issue of confusion between clinics, is that clinics and marketing sources do not talk about their laser in regards to what wavelength of light it gives out. This would be too easy……, if a clinic said it uses a wavelength of 755nm (4th from the right in the picture above) to treat your concern and another clinic said the same — bingo — you know you are getting the correct advice.

…….. Instead each company brands their laser with a different marketing name to make their specific laser stand out. So, you could come across 5 different marketing terms of laser machines and be led to believe they are all different as they have different names, making it confusing for you to understand which would be a better option!! But in reality, each machine could be the same e.g.: they could all emit exactly the same wavelength of light and do exactly the same job!

I often get people asking me which are better as the marketing makes them sound like different lasers.

For example, the Genesis laser and Gentle Max Pro lasers are the same but if one clinic advises you to have the Genesis laser done and another advises you should have the Gentle Max Pro procedure you would be left confused not knowing which to choose! I often get people asking me which are better as the marketing makes them sound like different lasers. But they both are a laser with a wavelength of 1064nm that treats the same conditions (1064nm is the small green line in picture above).

Laser devices on the market

The other issue is that companies then bring out buzz names to sell the treatment the laser is doing. A well-known example is Fraxel. This is a brand name that has been given to a technique performed, but it actually lends you to believe it can only be done with that particular laser — this is not true. It has done the companies very well but other lasers exist that will do exactly the same, but those companies may not have marketed the procedure or may have given it a totally different name — just to confuse you and I more!

Fraxel for example is a resurfacing technique utilized by a laser. The Fraxel company explains “Fraxel utilizes a “fractional” resurfacing technique. Fractional resurfacing creates thousands of microscopic treatment zones, whilst leaving microscopic treatment zones of untreated skin. “The fact that not all the skin is treated means that results are gained with less downtime. The opposite of this is full ablation. Full ablation means the full surface of the skin is treated leaving no untreated areas. This procedure can often lead to a longer downtime.

Fraxel as a brand name have sold themselves on this resurfacing technique — So the consumer is led to believe that a FRAXEL laser is different to all others but in fact most lasers that perform resurfacing can do either fractional or full ablative resurfacing.

So again, the consumer is led to believe that the lasers are different.