IPL Photofacial
Achieve your skincare goals with an intense pulsed light (IPL) photofacial. Whether you’re dealing with skin redness, sun spots, wrinkles or a different skin concern, this noninvasive, light-based treatment can leave your skin clearer, more even and refreshed.
At Berman Skin Institute, we’re here to support you through your skincare journey. Through our personalized IPL photofacial treatments in Northern California, we address your unique skin goals to reveal rejuvenated skin.
What Is an IPL Photofacial?
An IPL Photofacial uses light to improve the skin’s overall appearance. To understand how it works, let’s break down the name:
- IPL: This is the technology that powers the treatment. Unlike a laser, which uses a single, focused wavelength of light, an IPL device emits a broad spectrum of light in short, powerful pulses, addressing multiple skin concerns simultaneously.
- Photofacial: This term refers to a skin treatment (a “facial”) that uses light (“photo”) to achieve a cosmetic benefit.
Using broad-spectrum light, this technology gently targets concern areas, leading to gradual improvement. The light penetrates the skin where melanin, the pigment in brown spots or freckles, and hemoglobin, the red pigment in blood vessels, absorb it.
This energy converts to heat, which selectively breaks down these unwanted cells. Your body’s immune system then clears away these fragments, causing spots, redness and visible capillaries to fade and reveal a clearer, more even complexion.
Who Is an Ideal Candidate for an IPL Photofacial?
Because IPL works by targeting pigment, the treatment is most successful on skin tones with a clear contrast between a dark spot and the surrounding skin. For safety reasons, avoid tanning one month before treatment and excessive sun exposure.
For individuals with darker skin tones (Fitzpatrick IV-VI), the procedure carries a higher risk of complications. The epidermis contains more melanin, which can absorb the light energy meant for deeper targets. While our expert providers can use specific techniques, such as those with longer wavelengths, to mitigate this challenge, IPL is generally not recommended as the first-line treatment for darker skin types due to safety risks.
The best way to determine your candidacy is through a professional consultation. Our team will assess your skin and recommend the safest, most effective treatment to help you achieve your aesthetic goals.
What Can an IPL Photofacial Treat?
The IPL photofacial benefits you can expect include a more even skin tone, reduced appearance of sun damage and improved skin texture due to the production of more collagen. We generally recommend it to address the appearance of:
Rosacea
For individuals who experience the persistent flushing and redness of rosacea, IPL can offer significant relief. The treatment emits light that is specifically absorbed by the hemoglobin in the fine, superficial blood vessels that cause this condition. This process generates heat, which gently damages and seals these vessels.
The body then treats these sealed vessels as waste and absorbs them through its natural lymphatic system. The result is a noticeable reduction in overall redness, less frequent and intense flushing and a calmer, more balanced complexion.
Sun Damage
Years of sun exposure lead to sun spots, age spots (lentigines) and freckles, resulting from localized deposits of the skin pigment melanin. During an IPL photofacial treatment, this concentrated melanin absorbs the light energy and the resulting heat breaks down the pigment into tiny particles.
Over the next few days, these particles are pushed to the skin’s surface, appearing as dark specks that look like coffee grounds before they naturally flake off. This process then reveals the clearer, healthier and more evenly toned skin underneath.
Acne Scars
IPL is ideal for treating the lingering red or brown marks that acne leaves behind, a condition known as post-inflammatory hyperpigmentation (PIH). Photofacial IPL treats the discoloration, not pitted or indented acne scars. The light targets the excess melanin (brown marks) or residual hemoglobin from inflammation (red marks), breaking it down and accelerating the fading process to reveal a more even complexion.
Wrinkles
IPL can improve skin texture and soften fine lines. The light energy gently heats the dermis, creating a mild “thermal effect.” Your body responds to this heat by triggering a healing process that includes the gradual production of new collagen. This new collagen helps to firm the skin, reduce pore size and soften the appearance of fine lines over time, contributing to a more youthful look.
Broken Capillaries
Those small red lines often found around the nose and on the cheeks are superficial blood vessels or telangiectasias. The hemoglobin in the blood absorbs the light from the IPL photofacial, instantly heating the capillaries. This heat coagulates the blood and causes the vessel walls to collapse and seal shut. The body then reabsorbs and eliminates these sealed vessels, fading the visible red lines.
What to Expect During an IPL Photofacial Treatment
Your treatment begins with a comprehensive consultation to identify the target area and discuss your goals. Following this, one of our physicians, physician assistants and registered nurses will administer your treatment. Our providers customize each session, precisely adjusting the light’s wavelength and pulse duration to effectively target your specific skin concerns.
We apply a cool gel to the target area and then gently place the surface of the IPL handpiece on your skin to administer pulses of light. The photofacial device has a contact cooling crystal, which we apply close to the skin to reduce discomfort.
Many clients describe the sensation as a quick, warm snap. The procedure is generally tolerable, but clients with heightened sensitivity may prefer to apply a numbing cream 30 minutes before their session.
Safety, Side Effects, After Treatment and Recovery
PL photofacial is a well-established procedure recognized for its high degree of safety and predictable results. Side effects are uncommon, but we’ll conduct a thorough risk assessment during your consultation to confirm your candidacy.
The care procedure after treatment includes:
- Washing the area with a mild soap and gently patting it dry.
- Applying a soothing moisturizer to the skin.
- Avoiding excessive sun exposure and tanning for one week, and using sunscreen.
To help maintain your results after treatment for brown discoloration, we may recommend a maintenance regimen that includes fading creams and diligent sunscreen use.
After a session, you can typically resume your daily routines as usual. It’s common to see some mild flushing or redness for a few hours, and any treated pigmented spots will darken before they shed from the skin’s surface over the next several days.
IPL Laser Treatment Before and After Photos
PhotoFacial IPL for Broken Capillaries, Redness
PhotoFacial IPL for Brown Spots
What Our Clients Have to Say
I went here for a 1-off skin concern a year ago. The front desk scheduled a follow-up appointment without my knowledge for a year later. I missed their reminder call the day before the appointment (they called at 8 am and it went to voicemail). By the time I listened to their voicemails 2 days later I found out I would be charged $150 for missing the appointment.
The Berman Skin Institute Difference
Berman Skin Institute brings decades of experience to Northern California residents seeking to enhance their appearance or address skin concerns. With proven expertise backed by a board-certified team, we stand out from other service providers with these offerings:
Expert Dermatology
As a full-service medical and cosmetic dermatology institute, not a med spa, we are equipped to thoroughly assess and diagnose your concerns before recommending the most effective treatment plan.
A Superior Client Experience
We provide concierge-like care in a calming, state-of-the-art facility. Through every treatment, our team will treat you with compassion and talk you through the before and after protocols to enhance your results. You will have direct contact information for your provider and access to 24/7 phone support with a dermatologist, giving you peace of mind throughout the process.
Insurance and Financing
We accept health maintenance organization (HMO) and preferred provider organization (PPO) insurance plans, making our IPL photofacial treatment accessible to many people. Our payment plans, such as CareCredit and Allē and Cherry, further simplify payment for your treatments.
Ready to Rejuvenate Your Skin?
Berman Skin Institute is here to help you restore your skin to a more even-toned appearance. Schedule your consultation today to discuss your skin concern with a board-certified provider and identify the right solution to reach your aesthetic goals. We look forward to meeting you at one of our Northern California centers.
Frequently Asked Questions about IPL for Skin
This treatment has a very strong track record for safety and precision. Redness or flushing usually goes away in a few hours. Brown spots may turn slightly darker for a few days, and then flake off. Side effects are rare and generally temporary. The specific risks and the suitability of these procedures for a given individual can be determined only at the time of consultation. All procedures have some degree of risk. Minor complications that do not affect the outcome occur occasionally.
You can return to work the same day and resume most of your regular activities. By dividing the full program into several treatments, the procedure provides gradual improvement with very low risk. Return to normal activity immediately after procedure.
The PhotoFacial device has a contact cooling crystal which is applied close to the skin’s surface to eliminate discomfort for most patients. Anesthetics are not needed, though patients with very sensitive skin may apply a numbing cream 30 minutes before the procedure if desired.
Avoid excessive sun exposure. Avoid tanning for one month before your treatment.
Wash the area with a mild soap and gently pat dry, then apply a soothing moisturizer to the skin. Avoid excessive sun exposure and tanning for one week after your treatment. Consider the use of sunscreens. Patients who undergo the treatment to remove brown discoloration should consider the use of fading creams and sunscreen after the procedure.
Our Physicians, Physician Assistants and Registered Nurses.
Need a sooner appointment? Call our office directly for more options. 1.888.411.3376
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