General: Is the light dangerous?
General: Why is gel used ?
Hair: Are there any side effects?
Hair: Contraindications - Can IPL hair removal treatment be performed on patients with Thyroid problems?
Hair: Contraindications - Can patients on the antibiotic Accutane be treated?
Hair: Contraindications - Is vitiligo a contra-indication?
Hair: Does IPL treatment hurt?
Hair: Does the patient need to shave prior to treatment?
Hair: How can you tell if the hair treatment has worked?
Hair: How does the Ellipse system remove hair?
Hair: How is the applicator held ?
Hair: How long does hair removal treatment take?
Hair: How many treatments are needed for permanent hair removal?
Hair: Is any post treatment care necessary?
Hair: Is hair removal possible if the patient is pregnant?
Hair: Is permanent hair removal possible?
Hair: What precautions are needed before treatment?
Hair: Which patients can be treated?
Hair: Why do hairs appear to grow after the treatment ?
Hair: Why do I need to use a red pen to mark the treatment area?
Photo/Skin Rejuvenation: How Can I See if the Treatment is working?
Photo/Skin Rejuvenation: How long does Ellipse treatment take?
Photo/Skin Rejuvenation: What precautions are needed before and after treatment?
Photo/Skin Rejuvenation: Who can be treated?
Pigment: Are there any side effects to treatment?
Pigment: Does the patient need to shave prior to treatment?
Pigment: How is the applicator held?
Pigment: How many treatments are required?
Pigment: Is any post treatment care necessary?
Pigment: Which lesions can be treated?
Vascular: Can I combine IPL treatment with sclerotherapy?
Vascular: Do I have to mark the treatment area with a red pen?
Vascular: How can I see if I have am using the correct energy?
Vascular: How does the system work when removing vascular disorders?
Vascular: How is the applicator held?
Vascular: What exactly happen to the vessel wall when the haemoglobin is heated up?
Vascular: What is sclerotherapy?
Vascular: What is the maximum vessel depth that can be treated??
Vascular: What is the maximum vessel diameter that can be treated?
Vascular: What precautions are needed before and after treatment?
Vascular: Which vascular lesions are treatable with the VL applicator?

General: Is the light dangerous?
No. A filter ensures than no hazardous Ultraviolet (UV) light reaches the skin. A second filter ensures that the wavelengths which only cause heating of water in the skin are removed. Protective glasses should be used by both the operator and patient to reduce the risk of firing the light directly into the eyes.
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General: Why is gel used ?
A thin layer of gel is applied to the skin prior to treatment to ensure the best possible transmission of light energy from the applicator to the skin. To remove bubbles in the gel the applicator is moved back and forth a few times in the gel before the treatment is started.
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Hair: Are there any side effects?
Most patients experience no side effects of treatment. A normal reaction is that the skin becomes quite red immediately after treatment. Occasionally small blisters, can occur, similar to those experienced from excessive sun exposure. These skin reactions usually disappear within hours to a few days. In rare cases, temporary pigment changes in the skin might occur, but most patients experience fewer problems than after laser treatment.
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Hair: Contraindications - Can IPL hair removal treatment be performed on patients with Thyroid problems?
Yes, experts are agreed it presents no problems.
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Hair: Contraindications - Can patients on the antibiotic Accutane be treated?
Accutane and ruacutane are brand names of the drug Isotretinoin. It is used for treatment of acne. It can slow down the wound healing process. Experts agree that although there is little or no risk, treatment should be postponed until at least 6 weeks after use of Accutane has stopped. To top of the page

Hair: Contraindications - Is vitiligo a contra-indication?
Vitiligo (a skin disease causing de-pigmentation) is not a contraindication. However, in some cases the de-pigmentation occurs both in the skin and in the hair; if the hair contains no melanin, it cannot be permanently removed.
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Hair: Does IPL treatment hurt?
Most patients describe the pain as moderate (like snapping a rubber band against the skin). Ellipse uses a filter to remove light wavelengths that are absorbed by water in the skin and cause burning. However, because light energy is absorbed and converted into heat by the target chromophores, the pain depends on the concentration of melanin in the epidermis and the hair combined.

Consequently, patients with very dense black hair, or with pigmented (tanned) skin will find the treatment more painful. Ellipse has pre-programmed treatment suggestions for different hair and pigment types. However, patients should avoid tanning for 1 month before having hair removal treatment.
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Hair: Does the patient need to shave prior to treatment?
It is better if the patient arrives with the areas to be treated unshaved. The hairs need to be at least 1mm long to be seen clearly. This enables the area needing treatment to be marked out, using a RED pen. The area to be treated should then be shaved before starting treatment, to ensure best results. Remove the shaved hairs from the skin to ensure that they do not stick to the applicator.
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Hair: How can you tell if the hair treatment has worked?
For many patients, treatment results in the hair becoming loose in the follicle. It can often easily be pulled out with tweezers. A red ring around each follicle is sometimes seen a few minutes after treatment. These two indications are good signs that sufficient heating of follicles has taken place. However, many patients have successful treatment results without these post treatment signs.
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Hair: How does the Ellipse system remove hair?
Energy from the light source is absorbed by the target chromophore (melanin) in the hair and converted to heat. The heat is transferred to the hair follicle and destroys it, by heating it to 70°C, for more than 1millisecond. Filtering the wavelength of the light and choosing the optimum pulse time, ensures that the hair follicle is destroyed with minimum damage to the surrounding skin.
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Hair: How is the applicator held ?
For hair removal, the applicator is pressed firmly against the skin. This flattens the blood vessels, painlessly removing the blood, and optimises the light transmission to melanin in the hair.
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Hair: How long does hair removal treatment take?
The applicator size is large; approximately 20 times larger than the area of a traditional Ruby Laser spot and the treatment is therefore much faster. A facial treatment usually takes 10 minutes, whereas treatment of both legs, or an entire back, takes approximately 60 minutes.
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Hair: How many treatments are needed for permanent hair removal?
No-one can guarantee, permanent removal of all hair. It is possible to remove the hair, but not the reason that hairs grow. It is better to think of hair reduction (hair management) than hair removal. The number of treatments required for permanent hair reduction varies from patient to patient and from body site to body site. Only hairs in the growing phase can be treated, and this can vary from 10% to 70% of all hairs, depending on the site. For treatment of facial hair on most patients, 3 – 6 treatments (with 2 months intervals between treatments) will give optimal results.
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Hair: Is any post treatment care necessary?
It is recommended to limit sun exposure and to use sun screen (SPF 20) for a few weeks following treatment. Patients with sensitive skin may benefit from a single application of glucocorticoid cream immediately after treatment and antiseptic cream (chlorhexidine 1%) for a few days.
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Hair: Is hair removal possible if the patient is pregnant?
If a patient is pregnant, it is suggested that she waits until 2-3 months after she has given birth to begin treatment. At this time hair growth is synchronised, which means that she has an increased number of visible hairs, making the treatment much more effective.
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Hair: Is permanent hair removal possible?
Nobody knows for sure. Hair Management and Hair Reduction are increasingly the terms used. After the first treatment most patients get significant reduction in hair density. Hairs which re-grow tend to become finer and lighter in colour. It is important to know and to inform patients that the first treatment is believed to synchronise the growth phase of the non-growing hairs. This causes what seems to be re-growth – but what happens is that the remaining “resting” hairs start growing at the same time.
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Hair: What precautions are needed before treatment?
Patients should avoid tanning from 1 month before treatment and during the course of treatment. This will reduce light absorption by the skin, and reduce the risk of pain or burning. After treatment, the skin is more sensitive to UV-light, and exposure of the treated area to the sun should be avoided for a few weeks, to improve the long-term results. A sunscreen (SPF 20) must be used for 1 month after the treatment.
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Hair: Which patients can be treated?
Black hairs are most easily treated due to the large concentration of melanin in these hairs, which gives an optimal absorption and conversion of light energy to heat. Fair hair has less melanin and consequently less heat is produced with less certainty of permanent destruction of the hair follicles. Grey (white) hair has no melanin and cannot be efficiently treated.

The upper skin layer, the epidermis, also contains melanin and the concentration increases when the skin is exposed to UV-light. It is therefore necessary to treat dark-skinned and tanned individuals with less energy to avoid generation of heat (pain and/or burns). The ideal patient is fair skinned with dark hairs but the Ellipse system computer has pre-programmed treatment suggestions for different hair- and pigment types.
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Hair: Why do hairs appear to grow after the treatment ?
Unlike laser treatment, hairs are not evaporated during treatment with the Ellipse system. Ellipse IPL treatment destroys the hair follicles but the hairs remain in the follicles and are often attached to the epidermis. They will fall out after 1-3 weeks as the epidermis is renewed. During this period it will seem that the hairs are growing as the epidermis pulls them out. It is possible to show that the hair will fall out, by easily lifting it out with tweezers. This is important information to your clients, and they should be advised not to expect an instantaneous result.
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Hair: Why do I need to use a red pen to mark the treatment area?
Using a pen ensures that you remember to treat all areas. The dye used in red ink will not absorb energy. For other colours there is a risk that energy will be absorbed by the dye and cause burns to the skin.
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Photo/Skin Rejuvenation: How Can I See if the Treatment is working?
The skin of some patients will redden a little after treatment - this is called erythema and will last a few hours. After a few hours the areas of the skin that were pigmented will begin to look "dirty", caused by the melanin in the pigment. This "dirty look" will typically peel off after 7-14 days.
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Photo/Skin Rejuvenation: How long does Ellipse treatment take?
Because the glass prism of the applicator is large, 1cm by 5cm, a large area can be treated in one flash. A full-face treatment typically takes around 20 minutes.
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Photo/Skin Rejuvenation: What precautions are needed before and after treatment?
Patients should avoid tanning for at least 30 days before and during the entire treatment to avoid pain and / or burns from increased light absorption in the epidermis. Immediately after treatment, the skin is particularly sensitive to UV-light. Sun exposure of the treated area should be avoided for a several weeks to reduce the risk of side effects. A sunscreen SPF 20 must be used for a few weeks after the treatment.
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Photo/Skin Rejuvenation: Who can be treated?
As treatment is based on light absorption in melanin and haemoglogin, treatments are most effective in patients with light skin, who are not sun-tanned at the time of treatment. Ellipse System is pre-programmed for different skin colours and adjusts the energy output accordingly.
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Pigment: Are there any side effects to treatment?
There is a high possibility of hair removal in the treatment area. This is caused by uptake of light by melanin in the hair. A normal reaction is that the skin becomes quite red immediately after treatment. Crusting of the lesion can be expected. This will clear 1-2 weeks after treatment. In rare cases, temporary pigment changes in the skin might occur, but most patients experience fewer problems than after laser treatment.
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Pigment: Does the patient need to shave prior to treatment?
Yes, if there are hairs present, these can absorb some of the light energy. There is also a risk of the hair sticking to the applicator.
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Pigment: How is the applicator held?
The applicator is pressed firmly against the skin. This flattens the blood vessels, painlessly removing the blood, and optimises the light transmission to melanin in the lesion.
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Pigment: How many treatments are required?
The number of treatments depends on the lesion being treated. Solar lentigines require 1 – 3 treatments whereas café au lait spots take up to 12 treatments. Recommended treatment intervals are 1 month. Further information can be found in the Ellipse Clinical Workbook
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Pigment: Is any post treatment care necessary?
Patients with sensitive skin may benefit from a single application of glucocorticoid cream immediately after treatment and antiseptic cream (chlorhexidine 1%) for a few days. Patients should avoid for a month or so after treatment and should use a sunscreen (SPF 20) in this period.
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Pigment: Which lesions can be treated?
The pigmented applicator is efficient in treatment of epidermal lesions such as solar lentigines, melanocytic nevi, Becker’s nevi and café au lait spots. It is extremely important to ensure that the lesion is benign, and to take specialist advice from a dermatologist if unsure. A more detailed answer can be found in the Clinical Workbook.
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Vascular: Can I combine IPL treatment with sclerotherapy?
When treating leg veins it is recommended to first treat the larger (feeder) vessels with sclerotherapy. Wait at least 1 month before treating the remaining small vessels with IPL.
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Vascular: Do I have to mark the treatment area with a red pen?
It is not necessary to mark the treatment area for vascular lesions. One can easily see if an area has been treated.
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Vascular: How can I see if I have am using the correct energy?
A correct reaction is that the vessel will turn a bluish colour immediately after the “shot”. If the vessel turns a greyish colour, the energy is too high.
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Vascular: How does the system work when removing vascular disorders?
Energy from the light source is absorbed by the target chromophore (oxy-haemoglobin) in the blood. The filters used ensure the best possible uptake by oxy-haemoglobin, with minimal absorption by melanin and water.

The light energy is converted into heat energy, which is conducted to the vessel wall. The vessel wall is heated up to 70°C for at least 1 ms resulting in destruction of its protein.
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Vascular: How is the applicator held?
For vascular treatments, it is important that the applicator “floats” in the gel without any pressure against the skin surface.
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Vascular: What exactly happen to the vessel wall when the haemoglobin is heated up?
When the vessel wall reaches 70°C the protein in the vessel is destroyed. Following this the dead tissue will be removed by the white blood cells. This process will take approximately 1 month.
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Vascular: What is sclerotherapy?
During sclerotherapy a toxic substance is injected into a varicose vein. This causes the vein to collapse and walls to stick together.
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Vascular: What is the maximum vessel depth that can be treated??
This depends on the hydrostatic pressure (the fluid pressure in the vessel to be treated). If the pressure is high, the maximum treatable vessel depth is reduced.
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Vascular: What is the maximum vessel diameter that can be treated?
Vessels up to 0.5 mm diameter can be treated without any combination therapy.
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Vascular: What precautions are needed before and after treatment?
Patients should avoid tanning 60 days before and during the entire treatment to avoid pain and / or burns from increased light absorption in the epidermis. Immediately after treatment, the skin is particularly sensitive to UV-light. Sun exposure of the treated area should be avoided for a several weeks to reduce the risk of side effects. A sunscreen SPF 30 must be used for 4 - 6 weeks after the treatment.
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Vascular: Which vascular lesions are treatable with the VL applicator?
The following can be successfully treated: