BBL; Broad Band Light Treatment

BBL Sciton can address many skin concerns including-

• Pigmentation including freckles & non-melasma pigmentation
• Redness, flushing & rosacea
• Acne including pustules & zits
• Laxity with the BBL SkinTyte setting
• Fine lines. BBL can give marginal improvements with fine lines- lasers are much better for wrinkles

Treatments are gentle, with a recovery period dependent on the treatment settings & indications. You may slightly red after treatments with BBL, but you can wear makeup if you wish. 

If you are undergoing BBL for pigmentation, your spots will darken over the next few days, before flaking off. 

Frequently treated areas include the face, neck, chest, hands & arms. BBL/IPL is great for larger areas of skin, & in some cases is preferred over lasers. 

Used correctly, side effects are rare. Used incorrectly side effects are common, & include-

• Pigmentation flares up, especially melasma pigment. 
• Blistering
• Post treatment pigmentation or post inflammatory hyperpigmentation

BBL is a non-invasive treatment therefore mild discomfort is felt for a few short periods. The skin does feel slightly hot with each pulse, but is cooled with the special sapphire tip of BBL. 

BBL or broad band light is treatment for pigment & sun damage. It’s great for freckles, chest & decolletage rejuvenation.

• BBL full face: $590 per treatment  
• BBL neck and neck and décolletage: $690 per treatment 
• BBL forearms: $550 per treatment 
• BBL full arms: $790 per treatment 

Here’s the marketing bit. ‘Men & women who want a clearer & smoother complexion, fewer lines & wrinkles together with a radiant glow can benefit from BBL treatments. Each treatment can be tailored to suit each patient’s specific requirements.’ 

Here’s our take- BBL should be employed as best treatment practice for each skin condition. In most cases, other lasers are better, however for freckles & low contrast pigment, BBL can be very useful. 

BBL can be especially useful for patients who have freckling. One or two treatments yearly can keep your skin clear. 

In the context of anti-aging, fractional lasers are much better at preventing wrinkles & fine lines. They include Fraxel, Clear + Brilliant as well as fractional pico lasers including Picoway & Picosure Pro. 

Lasers fire one wavelength of light. BBL or broad band light delivers a variety of wavelengths via cut off filters. These filters are classified as broadband, covering 10 to 15 nanometers, or narrowband covering a more narrow spread. In most cases, lasers are far better at getting a task done, examples include-

• Wrinkles, fine lines & creases. CO2 lasers are best for this job
• Redness broken capillaries, again vascular lasers are much better than BBL
• Pigmentation & sun damage- we have pigment lasers for this job
• Melasma pigment- lasers are more precise than BBL or IPL

So, here is the truth. At Cutis we have over 35 lasers & energy devices, we employ the best device for a problem. It’s like having an adjustable wrench or specific tools. With the latter you will do a much better job, faster. BBL or Broad Band Light is an adjustable wrench, but it is exceptionally good at-

• Treating freckles
• Treating broad areas of pigment such as the neck, chest & decolletage
• Treating low contrast skin pigmentation on the face, arms, chest

The acronyms keep coming- BBL Forever Bare is a fast, comfortable & very inefficient way of hair removal. 

It is accepted that BBL or IPL should not be used for hair removal as it leaves behind wispy hairs that are resistant to BBL & also resistant to hair removal lasers. Dermatologists abandoned the use of BBL for hair a decade ago. Additionally long pulse Nd Yag lasers are infinitely safer at removing hair in darker skin types

Here is our take on things. Firstly, you need to consider patient demographics. In Brisbane, Queensland, we have a tremendous amount of photodamage or sun damage. This means there is more fragmented collagen than loose collagen. This is termed elastosis. We know that energy devices much more powerful than IR SkinTyte do not contract collagen well. This includes RF, as well as HIFU or Ultherapy – Ultraformer.

For broken collagen, CO2 lasers or super deep chemical peels are much better at collagen denaturation as compared to IR heat. 

Secondly you need to understand the differences when it comes to ‘statistically significant outcomes’ & clinical outcomes. An outcome based upon mathematics does not translate to clinical satisfaction rates- both subjectively & objectively. 

Thirdly you should compare various treatments to gain an understanding of treatment efficiency – both cost wise, & clinical outcomes. A simple fractional CO2 laser session, or Hybrid Laser Resurfacing will give much better results than half a dozen IR SkinTyte sessions. 

SkinTyte is an infrared treatment used to treat skin laxity & sagging. Infrared or IR penetrates deep into the dermal layers of skin. This uses IR to heat dermal collagen & in their cause denaturation & subsequent contraction of collagen, again in theory. 

This process initiates the body’s natural healing process which creates renewed collagen that may improve skin laxity. We used this device for just over 18 months, however, could not get the results as advertised. 

We find that CO2 lasers, especially combined with 1927 thulium laser, give much more predictable responses when it comes to skin tightening, especially in patients with sun damage. More on this in the next paragraph. 

Learn More (link to Hybrid Laser Resurfacing) 

Forever Young BBL is the only device shown to reprogram aging cells to behave like young, healthy skin, meaning the skin doesn’t just look younger – it is genetically programmed to be younger! It achieves this result by targeting the DNA of aging skin cells directly. Now if you believe this, go out there & get some DNA repair water. 

Here’s the truth, lasers, or even simple chemical peels (like TCA) can provide controlled destruction of abnormal cells- hell, even a simple cream like Efudix can ‘selectively’ destroy abnormal or aged cells. In fact, microneedling does the same. By reducing the population of abnormal or aged cells, new skin cells can repopulate the treatment area. You don’t need Forever Young BBL to do so, it’s achieved with some chemicals & sandpaper!