What you need to know about laser treatments Your laser treatment

Preparing for your treatment

Expect a feeling like an elastic band snapping against your skin during treatment

Before starting any kind of laser treatment you should run through these checks:

• Make sure your skin is clean and free of make-up, deodorant and other skin products.
• Your laser/IPL practitioner may use cold air, cold gel or ice packs to cool the area before treatment begins. Discuss whether this will be appropriate for you and how it may affect the treatment.
• If you're having laser hair removal treatment, you should clip or shave the area to be treated. Do not wax or use hair removal creams in between treatments.
• Make sure you don't have a tan, fake or real, and haven't recently been exposed to strong sunshine on the area of skin to be treated. One supplier of laser machines recommends that patients should not have been on a sun bed or have been sun bathing 30 days prior to treatment.
• You must be given special goggles or eye shields to wear to protect your eyes.

During laser treatment

You should expect some pain, similar to an elastic band snapping against the skin, and some reddening or swelling is usual for at least 24 hours after.

However if your treatment feels very painful, stop it immediately. Lasers can burn the skin, if inexpertly used, and can cause permanent scarring.

After your laser treatment

Your practitioner should warn you to avoid the sun after your treatment. They should also give advice on cleaning and moisturising your skin. You may want to apply a soothing cream such as aloe vera.

How your skin looks after laser treatment depends on the type of treatment you have. For hair removal, the area may appear red and a little bit tender. After a tattoo removal, the area may blister.

Possible side-effects

Treatments that involve targeting blood vessels rather than hairs, such as those for thread veins, may have painful after-effects and can cause bruising that can last for several days.

With laser treatment, there is also a risk that your skin might lose its natural colour or become darker. While normal skin pigment will usually recover, it can take a long time.