Syneron

I had another Aurora treatment yesterday to have my arms done. The Aurora seems to work faster (larger spot size) than the Lightsheer so I can get more areas done per session. So I decided to have my forearms done too. My forearms have never been lasered before and the skin is a little bit darker than on my upper arms. Shaving my forearms every day is a pain, but I prefer having them hairless because it is more comfortable and really brings out the muscular definition in them.

I could feel the IPL/RF pulses more than on my upper arms because the hair is more coarse their and the skin is darker. There was some redess but most of it was gone in a few hours and there is no scabbing. I could feel some burning though not bad. I am impressed with the lack of redness and scabbing after treatmen with the Aurora. After this experience I am more seriously considering getting my legs done too.

The only negative was that the machine was acting up near the end of my treatment session. It was starting to misfire. Ironically, I was just asking my practitioner about the reliability of the Aurora and the Lightsheer a few minutes earlier. Syneron will provide a replacement Aurora overnight if necessary. I remember the Apogee having many breakdowns, especially the cooling system. I hope I didn’t jinx the machine! It is probably a problem in the connecting cable due to the intermittent failure to fire.

I have a complete hair removal arsenal at my disposal: Lightsheer, Aurora, and of course electrolysis. I have to say I am very happy with each of them.

RJC2001

I’m glad to hear that your having good experiences during treatment with the Aurora, since its one of the new technologies and all.

Hey RJ i had my first Aurora treatment about a month ago on my back. The clinic told me to schedule my next one in June. I was wondering why i had to wait so long for my next treatment.

The standard interval between treatments recommended by Syneron is 8 weeks. I’ll ask my practitioner why tomorrow as I have another treatment scheduled.

I had some minor touchups done after two weeks and had good results from it. I am using a 4 week interval for my back and shoulders and will update on results.

So how did your first treatment go?

RJC2001

The literature from the manufacturers of every hair removal laser that I have read about agree that a six week healing time is advisable. During that time, they also recommend that one stay out of direct sun, no tanning, keep the area clean and dry, avoid makeup in the treated area and so on. I can’t get my electrolysis clients to do that for even 24 hours :stuck_out_tongue:

[ April 30, 2003, 06:36 AM: Message edited by: James W. Walker VII, CPE ]

Hey RCJ!

I thought that your shoulder and back were finished with lightsheer and electrolysis.

No, my shoulders and back are being finished with the Aurora. I am having electrolysis done on my chest to get the white hairs and the few stubborn that laser did not get. I have had no Lightsheer treatments this year, just Aurora IPL and electrolysis. If I am not happy with the long term results from the Aurora I will go back to the Lightsheeer.

I went with the Aurora because it is supposed to work better on finer and lighter colored hair. Also I prefer the Aurora for my forearms because there is less post treatment redness and scabbing than with the Lightsheer and I wear short sleeve shirts most of the time.

Too soon to comment on long-term results with the Aurora but so far I like it.

RJC2001

Hi rjc2001! I am new to this forum, in fact I’m pretty new to the internet and this is the first forum I’ve joined if you can believe it. But I am not new to the laser hair removal world. In '96 I first heard about it, and I was like a human guinea pig. I wish there was a forum like this back then that I could have shared my experiences with. I remember the day the Diode laser came in to the office and I had very high hopes.It was a big improvement over the early lasers in speed and comfort. I have light skin and coarse red hair. I did many treatments and got mixed results. Mostly my hair got lighter and finer which I am happy about, but I know that my hair color is a real problem. Do you think the Aurora could be the answer for me? It has been about three years since I tried removing hair and I don’t want to start again unless there has been improved treatments for red hair. Please share your experience and hope with me.

If the hair has pigment in it, which red hair does, the Aurora is supposed to be effective. I have only black and some white hairs. Most of the white hairs I had treated with electrolysis before I started Aurora treatments. I see if any white hair grows back and how much of it does. But white hair has no pigment so those results are not applicable to you.

I have had a few white hairs slide very easily out of the follicle after Aurora treatments but it is too early to draw concusions on that.

I like the Aurora, less scabbing, less redness, very good results at this point.

Hairs take longer to fall out with the Aurora 2-4 weeks at least. I can live with that though.

I would suggest finding an Aurora practitioner and getting a test spot done. That is the best way to tell.

RJC2001

Thanks for the reply. I’ll start calling to see if anyone in my city has this Aurora. Maybe you could do me a favor and ask your Tech if they’ve treated anyone with red hair,and if so, what are the results. Thanks again for sharing.

Next time I see her I’ll ask. I know she has treated lighter hair colors, but she said it is too early to tell about long term effective- ness.

RJC2001

I have a consultation this week with a practitioner in my area that is using the Syneron device. I am hoping to get a patch test on some red and white hairs to see if it is effective. RJC2001 and BAJOEY… please update how your treatments with the Aurora are going.

So far I am very happy with the Aurora treatments. It is too early to tell about long term effective- ness, but it seems I have had better hair reduction on my arms from the Aurora than with either the Lightsheer or the Apogee. This is comparing my intial treatment with the Aurora on my arms to the initial treatment with the Lightsheer on my arms.

There are a lot of “tombstones” with the Aurora. They are those black dots and they take 2-4 weeks, maybe longer to work their way out. Shaving with a blade will coax some of them out but not until they are ready. It seems to me that the more tombstones there are, the more follicles that have been destroyed.

The Aurora has a large spot size so it can cover a lot of area in a short time period.

I have been out in the sun in my boat for the first time this past weekend, 4 weeks after my last Aurora treatment. I had no sunscreen on the treated areas and no bad effects.

Also, when I had my first test spots my practitioner turned up the RF and IPL gradually with each pulse until I could really feel it. There was very little scabbing.

Hope this helps.

RJC2001

Hi all-
I am hoping for some advice. I have started some hair removal with the Gentlelase- and like it, but would like to switch to the Aurora. I contacted Syneron by e-mail asking about doctors using it in this area, and got nothing back from them. I spent a good day calling all the derms in the book around here (Washington DC)and could not find anyone using. If anyone knows of someone in the greater area using the Aurora- please contact me. Or suggestions on how to fins someone. Thanks!

I called the toll free # from the Syneron Home Page (North America). I asked them for a practitioner in my area, and they were very helpfull. I’m actually going for a consultation in about an hour. Syneron Toll Free # 1-866-259-6661. Good Luck!

Just had a patch test done with the Aurora, and thought I’d share my experience. The doctor said that he loves this machine because most of the people he treats have dark skin, and this new device seems to be a breakthrough in that area. I have light skin and red hair and asked him about that, stating that I had many treatments with other lasers with poor results, as is the case with everyone with blonde and red hair. He said that he had treated one woman with blonde hair on her upper lip and was shocked that it seemed to work! I had him do a patch test on me and I will go back in two to three weeks to asses, and have the patch treated again to address the new hair cycle.
I was happy to hear him agree to test the effectiveness on my troublesome hair color before asking me to pay for the treatment. The patch test was much less painfull than the diode, and seemed to cover a larger area with each pulse. I have sensitive skin and have experienced no swelling or even any redness. If this acually reduces my hair, I would have to say that this is the breakthrough I’ve been waiting for, but it will take a few months to see if it’s effective. If you would like to find a doctor in your area that is using the Aurora, just call Syneron toll free and ask. Go get a patch test, and let’s see if this new technology is the real deal!

A question for RJC2001 and Bajoey. You mentioned that with the aurora, it takes 2 to 4 weeks for the hair to fall out. But you also mentioned that you found some hairs to slide easily out of the follicle. I gave a few light tugs with tweezers on a couple of hairs that were treated on my patch test and they seemed to be in there pretty strong. Do you think this is a problem, or is that normal and these hairs should fall out in a couple weeks?

Dear Redhead,

your post was not directed at me, however i have also used the syneron laser removal. My hair did not fall out until after 3 weeks, before that the hairs just stuck tight. After 4 weeks, 50 % was gone. Now 5 weeks later I have regrowth on the bald area’s too, just coming back. It is spring so my hairs grow quickly.
You can just keep shaving the area, you will end up noticing a difference. Be patient,

hope this helps,
kate

Thanks for the information Kate. How long are you going to wait between treatments, and if you don’t mind me asking, what color hair and skin do you have?

Yes, I did, and still do have some hairs that are stuck in place. But more and more are working themselves loose. This is especially noticeable on my forearms which had never been treated my laser and were much hairier than the rest of my upper body.

I think the reason the hairs were stuck in place is that they were so thoroughly singed by the Aurora. When the hairs work loose they have what looks like a bulb on top but it is actually where the hair was singed.

I have been out in the sun a few times now sometimes w/o sunscreen on the treated areas and there have been no adverse effects from the Aurora. No pigment changes and no increased susceptibility to burning.

RJC2001