Electro-Optical Synergy (ELOS) Technology for Aesthetic Medicine Light Triggering Effect on RF Selectivity

In both technologies, the treatment is based on applying optical energy to the skin surface. The light should penetrate the skin to a depth of a few millimeters, where the energy is selectively absorbed by the target. One of the main limitations facing these technologies is the fact that the light has to penetrate through the epidermis before it can reach the depth necessary to cause the desired damage to the treated target. The epidermis, being rich in melanin, creates a major barrier for penetration of light. Additionally in some cases, such as hair removal, melanin is also the chromophor in the target. When high energies of light are used in order to create enough heating of the hair follicles, there is a high risk of overheating the epidermis to a temperature high enough to cause adverse effects, such as burns and pigmentation change. The problem and the risk become much worse in cases of dark skin as their melanin-rich epidermis is more likely to heat to a dangerous level before the target reaches the required temperature. The most sophisticated laser and IPL systems include a cooling system that decreases epidermal risk by lowering the initial epidermal temperature prior to heating.