What Are IPL Goggles? How To Choose It？

Those of you who know a little about laser beauty should know IPL and many of you may have searched for IPL goggles because the light is too harsh when you do IPL treatment. But what exactly is the difference between IPL goggles and laser goggles? Are marked with the protective band and OD value, how to choose when buying.

First, a brief introduction to the IPL project.

Pulsed Light (IPL) is a concept proposed by Dr. Patrick Butter Sr in California, USA in 1995. In English, all are called Intense light, so now they are shortened to IPL, which literally means Intense Pulsed Light. Photon rejuvenation technology, which swept the world in 1998, is defined as the use of strong pulse photons of continuous wavelength for non-exfoliative non-invasive treatment under low energy density. Simply put, it is to use light with more energy than the general light (pulse light) to achieve skin rejuvenation under the premise of no skin damage. This pulsed light is not classified as a laser because it is a band light (500-1200nm) rather than having a specific wavelength like a laser.

The principle is that in the 500-1200nm band of light, photons of various wavelengths such as 585nm, 694nm, and 1064nm can be targeted separately or simultaneously on the skin melanin, collagen fibers, and hemoglobin, thus providing the same effect as receiving multiple very low-energy laser treatments at the same time. For example, melanin can be broken due to light absorption and heating to fade spots; hemoglobin is deformed and coagulated by heat to damage capillary endothelial cells and dredge blood vessels (577nm); collagen fibers and elastic fibers are stimulated to rearrange to reduce wrinkles and tighten the skin.

However, as IPL is intense pulsed light, its energy has far exceeded the safety threshold of human eyes. Therefore, in IPL treatment, for the protection of eyes, operating physicians and therapists need to wear protective glasses. And that's what IPL goggles are for. However, the biggest difference between IPL and laser can be seen from the definition, that is, IPL is a wavelength range (such as 500-1200nm), while the laser is a single wavelength, which determines that the selection of IPL goggles should not start from the protection of a single wavelength.

So how can you choose and buy IPL  goggles? We have sorted out the following purchasing process:

1. You must first determine the wavelength range of the IPL device.

This general regular manufacturer will be marked, because the Office of the State Medical Products Administration in May 2018 issued the "Office of the State Medical Products Administration on the classification and definition of intense pulse light hair removal products Notice" (Office of the State Medical Products Administration [2018] No. 10), provisions:

1) Intense pulse light hair removal products are managed according to the second category of medical devices, and the classification code is 09-03-04;

2) Application for registration can be made according to the Measures for the Administration of Registration of Medical Devices (Order No. 4 of the State Food and Drug Administration);

3) Since January 1, 2023, intense pulse light hair removal products shall not be produced, imported, or sold without obtaining the registration certificate of medical devices according to law.

2. Search for "IPL safety glasses".

Since laser safety glasses are usually targeted at a specific wavelength of the laser, the protective glasses of general IPL equipment will have a proprietary name: IPL protective glasses. A direct search for this keyword will better locate the desired product.

3. Ask for the OD value of the infrared band of the protective mirror.

The OD values of different bands of IPL protective goggles from different manufacturers will be different. Although some IPL protective goggles can protect the wavelength of 780-1400nm, the transmittance of the infrared band, that is, 780nm, especially 1064nm, is as high as 90%. No IPL goggles on the market have OD 2 in the 500-1400nm wavelength range, because that means there is no visible light at all -- that is, the lens is too dark to see what is around, let alone operate the device. Therefore, generally speaking, the protection of IPL is OD value reaching 1 or 2 in some bands, which should be analyzed according to the specific power of equipment and equipment power.

4. Ask for the product quality certification certificate.

Although the IPL protection effect is more obvious than the laser protection effect to the naked eye - usually reflected in the operation of wearing glasses strong pulse of white flash is no longer harsh, but first, this does not mean that non-harsh visible light is not harmful to the human eye; Secondly and more importantly, the infrared band (after 780nm) protection is invisible to the naked eye. At this time, only rely on the authority of the certification certificate (such as CE or national optical detection certification) to verify the authenticity of the product OD value. If the 1064nm label is OD=2 (the transmittance shall not be higher than 1%), it will be shown on the national optical inspection certification.

5. Choose the right style.

After determining the parameters and quality certification, you can choose your own glasses style, some styles can be worn with glasses, and some are relatively light and easy to operate, this is completely according to individual needs to decide.

6. After-sales service can't be ignored.

Please pay special attention to the fact that due to the different parameters of IPL equipment, everyone has different operation habits. Therefore, if you encounter problems in the operation after wearing the IPL safety goggles, such as not seeing the light spot, or the lens color being too dark to see the hairline, please contact the manufacturer in time, although these are not product quality problems. But most of the reasons are parameter mismatches, regular manufacturers will be based on everyone's needs to solve effectively.

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