Hair removal with a second generation broad spectrum intense pulsed light source--a long-term follow-up.

BACKGROUND There is an increasing demand for safe and efficient hair removal. Although long-term hair removal has been demonstrated using lasers and non-coherent light sources, permanent hair removal has been difficult to claim due to the long growth/rest cycle of normal human hair follicles. OBJECTIVE To evaluate bikini line hair removal with a second generation intense pulsed light (IPL) source. METHOD Ten females (20 bikini lines) with dark hair and skin types II-IV were treated with an IPL (600 nm) four times with a 1-month interval. Counting of the hair follicles was carried out with a computer imaging system before treatment, and 4 and 8 months after the treatments. RESULTS Hair reduction of 74.7% (SD +/- 18.3%) was seen 4 months after the treatments and 80.2% (SD +/- 20.3%) 8 months after the last treatment. Only minimal side effects were noted and no pain or other discomfort was registered during the treatments. CONCLUSION The present study demonstrated that this new IPL system is both efficient and safe for hair removal. Because the follow up period of 8 months is twice the cycle time for hairs in the bikini line area, the obtained hair reduction in this study was long-lasting.