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The majority of laser clinics in the UK only offer IPL treatment and claim to be expert at rosacea treatment.

The following discussion is intended to explain the differences between Rosacea treatment offered on every street corner and treatment provided by medical specialists from a designated laser suite.

Why choose us?

Expert treatment of Rosacea requires a skilled laser operator who is able to safely alter the following parameters

  • Wavelength (colour of light)
  • Pulse Width (shutter speed)
  • Spot size (measured usually in mm)
  • Fluence (power)

The appropriate selection ensures optimal destruction of target blood vessels without collateral damage to the surrounding skin

Laser Wavelength

The optimal treatment of rosacea involves the use of laser and light technologies to target haemoglobin within blood vessels situated at multiple depths throughout the skin.

Vascular Absorption Spectrum

Vascular Absorption Spectrum Chart

At our Cambridge Laser Clinic we utilize numerous laser wavelengths to achieve superior results.

In general, the longer the wavelength the deeper the laser penetration.

Depth of Penetration by Wavelength

Depth of Penetration by Wavelength-chart

This is important because

  • Flushing is controlled by destroying deeper feeder vessels requiring a deeply penetrating, rapid pulsing Nd Yag 1064nm LP laser
  • Superficial diffuse redness and very fine blood vessels are optimally treated using the Candela V Beam 595nm Pulsed Dye Laser (PDL) either in purpuric (bruising) or non- purpuric (non-bruising) modes. (maximum depth of penetration 1.5mm)
  • Larger discrete superficial bright red (oxygenated) vessels are removed using the KTP 532nm LP laser (maximum depth of penetration 1mm)
  • Larger discrete deeper purple/blue (de-oxygenated) vessels are removed using the Nd Yag 1064nm LP laser (maximum depth of penetration 4-5mm)

2 high-powered Intense Pulsed Light (IPL) devices are also available if requested with filters set within both superficial green (540 -950nm) and a deeper yellow spectrum (570 -950nm) However, it should be noted that results for the treatment of diffuse redness and very fine blood vessels are far superior using the Candela V Beam 595nm PDL in multi-pass modes.

Pulse Width

Vessel closure is pulse width (shutter speed) dependant not fluence (power) dependent.

This is important because

  • Thin structures such as fine blood vessels are unable to ‘hold’ heat and short pulse widths (5-10ms) are needed to ensure vessel closure and destruction.
  • Larger blood vessels heat more slowly and require much longer pulse widths (30ms -40ms)

Target Diameter v Pulse Duration

Target Diameter v Pulse Duration Chart

Diffuse redness and blush is caused by massive numbers of microscopic blood vessels so densely packed together that we are unable to see individual vessels and hence visualise a uniform blanket of redness.

Optimal treatment utilises the latest generation of Pulsed Dye Laser at 595nm. This laser has massively superseded the most advanced Intense Pulsed Light devices by utilising multi-pass techniques. This enables the operator to laser over the same skin 2 or 3 times in one treatment session altering the pulse width on each pass hence targeting both small and large diameter blood vessels for optimal results.

This advanced technique can also be delivered without causing bruising (non-purpuric) enabling an immediate return to normal activities.

Spot Size

In general the bigger the spot size the deeper the penetration of laser light for that given wavelength.

Effect of Changing Spotsize

Effect of Changing Spotsize

The Candela V Beam 595nm PDL enables the operator to laser over the same skin 2 or 3 times in one treatment session altering the spot size on each pass hence targeting blood vessels at multiple depths. Hence by varying the pulse width and spot size in a treatment session, vessels of different diameter situated both superficially and deeply can be targeted.

This laser has massively superseded the most advanced Intense Pulsed Light devices and is now our gold standard recommendation.

Larger discrete blood vessels are targeted utilising the KTP 532 LP or Nd Yag 1064nm LP lasers. Ideally spot size should equate to vessel diameter so often multiple spot sizes are required to optimally treat varying vessel diameters.

Vessel diameter 0.1-0.3mm = spot size 1.5mm
Vessel diameter 0.3-0.6mm = spot size 3mm
Vessel diameter 0.5-1.5mm = spot size 5mm

Fluence (power)

Successful closure and hence destruction of blood vessels necessitates heating the blood within the vessel to at least 70 degrees C. The resulting thermally injury to the blood vessel wall stimulates an inflammatory reaction and reabsorption of the damaged structure.

If too little energy is applied, the target blood vessel will heat but not reach destructive temperatures. If too much energy is applied, excess energy will dissipate beyond the target and destroy adjacent structures.

Effective treatment hence necessitates high quality lasers that can safely deliver large amounts of energy (up to 450 j/cm2) to the target blood vessel without collateral damage to the surrounding skin

All vascular treatments at our Cambridge Laser Clinic are delivered utilizing protective skin cooling using forced cold air (ACC) or cryogen spray (DCD) to ensure any unwanted heat transferred to the skin is quickly removed.

The use of laser and light technologies with variable wavelengths, variable pulse durations, variable spot sizes and variable fluences enable the laser operator to take advantages of each systems strengths but not be restricted by its weaknesses.

No matter the symptom, be it redness, visible thread veins, flushing or inflammatory acne eruptions, we have a laser or conventional treatment for all prospective clients.

High quality lasers must be accompanied by skilled laser operators for superior results.

Our expert medical team has in excess of 30 years laser experience and have completed more than 150,000 successful treatments. Rest assured you are in safe hands. All procedures at our Cambridge Laser Clinic are performed by fully qualified doctors, nurses and practitioners.

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