The question of when to choose electrolysis over laser hair removal is a good one, and we hear this from many of our clients.  Here are a few tips…

Q: When do I choose electrolysis over laser hair removal?

A: Electrolysis treats light colored and finer hairs that will not respond to laser hair removal.  It is also great for shaping eyebrows.  Laser works well on coarse, dark hair.  It will not have an effect on finer textured hairs whether they are light or dark in color.

Q: What skin color can be treated with electrolysis? With laser?

A:  For electrolysis, any skin color, from light to very dark. With laser, light to medium skin types.  Persons with dark skin are not candidates for laser hair removal, due to the risk of overtreatment.

Q:  What hair types can be treated with electrolysis?

A:  All hair types: fine, coarse, light and dark

Q: Can you treat tanned skin?

A:  The efficacy of electrolysis is not affected by tanned skin. Laser should not be used on tanned skin, or skin recently exposed to UV rays.

Q: What does it feel like?

A:  With electrolysis, you may experience a sensation like a slight sting or feel some heat, but it should not be painful.  Intensity settings are customized to your individual sensitivity. With laser, skin may feel anywhere from warm to hot during treatment.  Following treatment skin may feel sensitive, similar to having had too much sun.  Numbing the area with a numbing agent prior to your laser treatment will help reduce the sting.

Q: Will treated hair be visible following a treatment?

A:  Hair is removed with tweezers immediately following electrolysis.  With laser, the area is shaved prior to the treatment, and treated hairs work their way to the surface and shed on their own.  This takes anywhere from a few days to 10 days or more.

Q:  How do I manage hair between treatments?

A:  You may shave or trim hairs close to the skin.  Allow 2 – 3 days of growth prior to each electrolysis treatment.  With laser, the treatment area is shaved just prior to treatment.

Q:  Can I still tweeze or wax?

A:  Tweezing and waxing must be discontinued with both electrolyis and laser hair removal.  Any time a hair is removed by tweezing or waxing there is a delay in treatment of that hair follicle.  If hair is not visible above the skin it cannot be treated with electrolysis.

Q:  How long will a treatment take?

A:  Each hair is treated individually with electrolysis.  Electrolysis is a slower, more meticulous process than laser hair removal.  With laser, a 1/2″ x 1/2″ area is treated with each pulse of light.  The bikini area can typically be treated in 30-40 minutes.

Q:  How many treatments will be needed?

A:  Hairs have different growth cycles.  The average hair can take 3 to 12 weeks to complete just one cycle.  You can’t tell if a hair is in its active growth phase from the surface, and some hairs take more than one treatment with electrolysis.  Because of varying stages of hair growth there are no average treatment guidelines for electrolysis as there are with laser hair removal, though treatment intervals are generally one to two weeks apart.  With laser, standard treatment protocol is every 4 -6 weeks for an average of 5 treatments.

Q:  What will skin look like after electrolysis?

A:  The area may be pink immediately following electrolysis.  This normally fades in 1-2 hours.  If there is lingering pinkness or swelling, the patient may apply ice.  Areas treated with laser may feel warm to hot during treatment.  Afterward, skin may feel sensitive, similar to an area that has had too much sun exposure.

Q:  Is it safe?

A:  Probes used for electrolysis are pre-sterilized and disposable.  Tweezers are sterilized so no chance of cross-contamination exists.  Risks associated with laser treatments are minimized by choosing a qualified technician who is trained in laser hair removal, and completely familiar with the equipment used in treatment.

We are all searching for something that costs very little but does a lot, or a very low risk investment that always pays off, makes us wealthy.  Something for nothing.  It doesn’t work that way, though.

Plastic surgery is usually like the rest of our world.  Small procedures usually yield small results.  The larger procedures usually yield more dramatic results. 

There is one procedure done in the office under local anesthesia that appears to defy the standard rule.  For such a small operation, the results are often dramatic.  Upper lid blepharoplasty is the removal of the excess upper eyelid skin.  That extra piece of skin is what makes people look old, tired.

In about one hour the procedure is done, the eyes look around ten years younger.  There is no dressing or bandage.  Showering or bathing can be immediate.  The suture is an invisible hem-type that runs under the skin and is easily slipped out at the time of the first post-op visit a few days later.

If you want to defy the rules, look younger and avoid spending a fortune, upper blepharoplasty may be for you.

My Plastic Surgery Group is currently hiring for several positions.

Patient Coordinator – New patient consult and intake, scheduling, patient follow-up.  This position works closely with the surgeon to ensure seamless patient care.

Medical Assistant – Attends consults with the doctor for injection, reconstruction and surgery follow-up patients; orders clinical supplies; stocks patient and procedure rooms; monitors hazardous waste and laundry.

Job descriptions are summarized, and do not include all duties.

Interested candidates can send their resume to Loretta Lungren Vestermark at lvestermark@sandojonesaker.com.

Roughened skin, which may be a product of acne with pitted scars, less-than-ideal scars from prior surgery or trauma, or uneven  surfaces from aging,  can present special cosmetic challenges.  Dermabrasion enjoys a valued position in our surgical armamentarium.  It is a technique in which the surgeon literally sands the damaged skin, much as one might sand a piece of wood, using a high-speed rotary device. Although laser, and in some instances chemical peels have been used as substitutes, dermabrasion has provided safe, consistent results with rapid recovery.  In many instances the procedure can be done under a local anesthetic (numbing medicine) in the doctor’s office with or without oral calming medicine.

The skin is abraded to create an appearance not unlike a “rug burn” which over the next 5-10 days of very simple home care, yields to the growth of a newly healed surface of smooth pink skin, which may be camouflaged cosmetically as it fades normally over 6-10 weeks.  If one has any history of cold sores or fever blisters in the mouth area, the doctor should be alerted in advance so that protective anti-viral medication can be taken as a precaution.

Dermabrasion should not be confused with microdermabrasion which is also an office treatment , usually by a licensed aesthetician, using a high pressure sand sprayer to remove the outermost epithelial layer of dead skin cells to exfoliate and freshen the skin appearance.  Dermabrasion, on the contrary, is a deeper, more powerfully active procedure.  It is nearly the ideal approach to smooth the vertical lip lines we all seem to develop over the years.  Be certain to ask the health care professionals at My Plastic Surgery Group for more information, and prepare for a future of smooth facial skin.

Too much fat, like too much of anything, is bad.  The right amount is good.  Babies are born with excess fat (baby fat, right?)  As we age, we gradually lose fat.  Even obese people may lose fat in specific limited areas.  If we want to have a more youthful appearance, not only do we need to get rid of or disguise wrinkles with products like Botox, Dysport, Restylane, Juvederm or Perlane, we need the fat in the upper eyelids, cheeks and lips to stay around!  How can we do that?  Well, since it doesn’t stay around by itself, a more youthful look will require its replacement.  And, fat transfer may be the answer. 

To learn more about this procedure stay tuned to this blog as Dr. Jones discusses the reliability of fat transfer, what we know about fat tranfer, how long this procedure has been around, what’s new with fat transfer and more.