IPL

If skin discoloration negatively affects your self-confidence or quality of life, rely on Thrive Medical Spa & Wellness in Haymarket, Virginia, to improve your skin’s tone, texture, and color. The physician-led med spa team provides intense pulsed light (IPL) treatments to create even-toned, beautiful skin without invasive procedures. Schedule an IPL evaluation at Thrive Medical Spa & Wellness by calling the office or booking an appointment online today.

What is IPL treatment?

IPL, or intense pulsed light, is a noninvasive aesthetic treatment that uses broad-spectrum light pulses to target skin discoloration concerns or unwanted face or body hair. It improves the overall appearance of treated skin, creating youthful beauty without pain, surgery, needles, or downtime.

Which conditions can IPL treatment address?

IPL treatment can treat the following:

• Sun damage
• Age spots
• Freckles
• Pigmentation irregularities
• Undesirable facial or body hair
• Melasma
• Broken blood vessels
• Rosacea
• Port-wine stains

These pigmentation irregularities may develop because of vascular conditions, unprotected sun exposure, hormonal changes, or genetics.

IPL can improve your skin’s texture and tone, enhancing the appearance of your face, neck, chest, hands, or other problem areas. IPL creates flawless beauty. It’s a safe, low-risk way to look and feel years younger.

How does IPL technology work?

IPL passes light waves through the top skin layer, targeting lesions or other pigmentation concerns. It uses numerous wavelengths to damage hair follicles or lighten darker skin spots by destroying pigment cells. 

IPL wavelengths can also heat the blood supply in damaged blood vessels, causing visible spider or varicose veins to collapse. Your body absorbs and eliminates the diseased veins over time. 

Treated facial or body hair begins to fall out in the days and weeks following IPL hair-removal treatment sessions.

What happens during IPL treatment?

During IPL procedures, wear glasses to protect your eyes. Your specialist may apply numbing cream or cooling gel to the treatment areas to reduce any pain.

Your provider uses a specialized device to emit pulsed light beams into targeted areas. This may feel like a rubber-band snapping sensation. The length of your treatment varies based on the size of the areas treated, but it might last 20-30 minutes or longer.

For many skin conditions, you may need 3-6 treatments spaced about a month apart, allowing your skin time to heal between sessions. Hair removal might require 6-12 sessions to achieve the desired results.

Does IPL cause any side effects?

While the treated lesions may appear darker at first, they fade during the few weeks after treatment when pigmented cells break down or flake off. 

Common side effects after the procedure include redness, short-term skin-color changes, sensitivity, crusting, and sometimes swelling. It might feel like you have a sunburn for several hours. You can apply a cold compress to treated skin to soothe it.

Schedule an evaluation at Thrive Medical Spa & Wellness by phone or online today to learn more about IPL and determine if it’s right for you.