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I had a treatment for laser hair removal yesterday and now have a burn. Is this permanent?

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rs9467Mar 30, 2009

I had a treatment for laser hair removal a yesterday and am very worried i may be permanently scared or discoloured. I guess the Alexandrite laser was set at too high! I have attached a picture and would love to get some advice on how bad the damage is and what i can do to get back to normal if possible. Unfortunately it seems anyone with or without training can perform the treatment. I wish i knew this before and hope I am not damaged for life.

Answers (22)

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Dr. Harold J. Kaplan, MD
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Dr. Harold J. Kaplan, MD
Board Certified Facial Plastic Surgeon
4.8 | 20 Reviews
Answered on Jul 12, 2017
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Dr. Jeffrey R. Raval, MD, FACS, MBA
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Dr. Jeffrey R. Raval, MD, FACS, MBA
Board Certified Facial Plastic Surgeon
4.8 | 49 Reviews
Answered on Mar 18, 2019
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Dr. Anil R. Shah, MD
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Dr. Anil R. Shah, MD
Board Certified Facial Plastic Surgeon
4.6 | 374 Reviews
Answered on Oct 24, 2016
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Dr. Michael Constantin Gartner, DO
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Dr. Michael Constantin Gartner, DO
Board Certified Plastic Surgeon
4.6 | 248 Reviews
Answered on Feb 18, 2015
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Dr. Jerome Edelstein, MD
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Dr. Jerome Edelstein, MD
Certified Plastic Surgeon
4.9 | 235 Reviews
Answered on Dec 14, 2014
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Dr. Raffy Karamanoukian, MD, FACS
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Dr. Raffy Karamanoukian, MD, FACS
Board Certified Plastic Surgeon
4.6 | 125 Reviews
Answered on Apr 7, 2014
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Dr. Jayanthy Ravindran, MS, DNB, MRCS
Dr. Jayanthy Ravindran, MS, DNB, MRCS
Plastic Surgeon
Answered on Feb 15, 2021
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Dr. Robert W. Sheffield, MD
Dr. Robert W. Sheffield, MD
Board Certified Plastic Surgeon
Answered on Oct 29, 2020
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Dr. Neda Vanden Bosch, MD
Dr. Neda Vanden Bosch, MD
Physician, Board Certified in Radiology
Answered on Jan 31, 2020
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Dr. Renita (Lourdhurajan) Rajan, MD, DNB
Dr. Renita (Lourdhurajan) Rajan, MD, DNB
Dermatologist
Answered on Aug 25, 2019
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Harold J. Kaplan, MD

Hi Arennison, The answer to your question is yes, your laser hair removal treatments can be very close together if you want, as often as several days apart. But the reason you would not want to do this is that you would be wasting your money. For laser hair removal to work, there needs to be a...

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Harold J. Kaplan, MD

Hi MSM. "Hypopigmented" or white are an unfortunate potential side effect of laser hair removal treatments that occurs when the laser or settings are not correct for your skin type. Although these types of scars are tough to treat, there is hope and we do have a suggestion for you...

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Harold J. Kaplan, MD

Hi Priya, We have not experienced this phenomenon directly at our practice and so do not know whether or not the effects you are seeing will be permanent. Research that we have read indicated that this phenomenon can be prevalent when IPL or laser treatments are performed at very low (and...

+3 answers
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Harold J. Kaplan, MD

Hi Baran, Here is how the laser hair removal process works: Each hair is "fed" by a very small vein that enters the hair follicle at the base or "bulb". This bulb is the thickest and darkest part of the hair. When laser light is fired into the skin, the dark bulb of...

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Harold J. Kaplan, MD

Below is a list of issues that may prevent you from getting a laser hair removal treatment at our facility. The list is not meant to be exhaustive but is a good starting point for issues that are contrainidcated for laser hair removal. Photosensitizing Medications (evaluated with medical...

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Gregory Turowski, MD, PhD, FACS

As long as there is no pigmentation over the scar and the area is healed completely, laser hair removal is safe. Choosing a diode laser with a smaller tip will give you faster results. Test spotting the area first, with lower energy to make sure that the skin can tolerate the laser is very...

+4 answers
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