Do You Want To find out your skin type for hair laser removal? A clever chap called Thomas Fitzpatrick in 1975 developed a system for classifying a person’s complexion and their tolerance to sunlight. This “Fitzpatrick Classification Scale” is now used by clinic’s world over to determine the type of laser and facial treatments your skin can take.
There are three main elements that contribute to what skin type you are:
- Genetic complexion: Your skin type is determined by your genes and the respective gene is one of many that contributes to your final appearance, which also includes your hair color, eye color, etc.
- Sun exposure reaction: In assessing your skin type, the way your skin reacts to sun exposure is an important factor.
- Tanning regularity: The simple question of how often do you tan? is an important factor when assessing your skin type.
Knowing your skin type for hair laser removal is crucial for both safety and effectiveness and below is the Fitzpatrick Classification system. There are six skin types, I – VI as follows.
Skin Type 1 – Pale white or freckled, fair, and typically Northern European or Scandinavian.
Skin Type 2 – Normal white, fair, and associated with European descent. English, Polish, etc.
Skin Type 3 – White to olive, for example of Mediterranean descent like Spanish and Italian, etc.
Skin Type 4 – Light brown, lighter-skinned Asians, Persians, or Middle Easterners.
Skin Type 5 – Brown, Light skinned North Africans, African Caribbeans, and Asians.
Skin Type 6 – Dark brown, Africans, African Caribbeans, Southern Asians, and Sri Lankans, etc
Skin types 4-6 involve the largest risk for injury if a laser technician is not properly trained in treating dark skin types. Skin in these three categories includes people with olive, Mediterranean, Asian, and African-Caribbean ethnic backgrounds.
Incorrect settings on a cosmetic laser caused by poor analysis or improper training can cause irreversible damage in the form of hyperpigmentation, hypopigmentation, burning, or scarring.
That is why I perform (and all other trained technicians should also) a free patch test to make sure your skin can proceed to full hair removal laser treatment. The patch test involves different levels of intensity and will inform me of your reaction to the treatment. Skin reaction is normally delayed and thus it is important to wait 48-72 hours before commencing to full hair removal laser treatment.
Not only is the Nd: YAG 1064nm laser widely regarded as the safest for all skin types, it is really the only laser that is safe and that can deliver the results you want for skin types 4-6. This is the most optimal laser for ethnic skin tones. The physical properties of this laser allow it to penetrate more deeply than the other two lasers, thus bypassing the upper layers of skin that contain higher levels of melanin in darker skin types.
Along with the all-important laser 1064nm’s long wavelength, there are several other parameters to work with, including the timing of the laser pulses, the compression of the device, and the amount of energy put into the skin. These parameters allow for the safest treatment with enough laser energy to produce effective permanent laser hair removal.
Now you know your skin type for hair laser removal, contact me and arrange for your free patch test.