Skin health can be confusing. Even if you’re well-versed in ingredients, products and the needs of each skin type, the jargon surrounding in-office professional treatments isn’t always easy to understand. And since there are tons of offerings at doctors’ offices, it’s not uncommon to book more than one type of procedure—ranging from lasers and more—in order to create a treatment plan that works to diminish all of your skin concerns over time. But what if we told you there’s a revolutionary treatment available that targets multiple issues at once, allowing you to experience maximum results with minimal discomfort and little to no downtime after just one session?
Luckily, BBL® HEROic™ can do just that. In fact, experts say it has helped the industry enter a new era of skin health. Keep reading for your comprehensive guide on this treatment, including a breakdown of the differences between this technology and others on the market, the results you can expect and more.
First, what is BBL® HEROic™?
To understand BBL® HEROic™, it’s important to first understand its name. BBL stands for BroadBand Light®, and HEROic stands for High-Energy Rapid Output with Intelligent Control™. BBL therapy uses an advanced version of intense pulsed light (IPL) that treats a variety of skin concerns, including hyperpigmentation like sun or age spots, rosacea, fine lines and wrinkles, and uneven texture. It can also treat spider veins or other small blood vessels, like broken capillaries.
How does it work?
The treatment emits broad-spectrum photothermal energy, which is absorbed by darker pigments in the skin (aka hyperpigmentation) or hemoglobin in blood vessels (which causes redness). As the skin absorbs the heat and energy from the light, cells of pigmentation and superficial blood vessels in the treated area are destroyed. Over time, hyperpigmentation flakes off and the body absorbs particles of the damaged blood vessels. Additionally, this process stimulates the body’s wound-healing mechanisms, promoting the growth of new, revitalized tissue.
“Because we’re able to deliver so many hundreds of pulses in a given area of skin in a short period of time, it allows us to achieve a revitalizing effect on the skin that is really unmatched by any other IPL device on the market,” says double board-certified dermatologist in New York, Sherrif Ibrahim, MD. PhD. “And what I have found in my own practice is results that you can’t achieve with any other device, because now we can treat anywhere from head to toe in a matter of a few minutes.”
What kind of results can you expect from BBL® HEROic™?
While the time period in which final results are visible may vary, you’ll see a difference in your skin rather quickly. “What we see immediately is that the brown spots become darker, and that’s a nice indication that those spots that we want to lighten or get rid of have absorbed the appropriate amount of energy from the BBL® HEROic™ device,” says Dr. Ibrahim. “When treating the face, it can take about five or six days for those spots to flake off, [while on the body], it can take up to two weeks.”
According to Dr. Ibrahim, beautiful results set in at about three or four weeks along the face, and along the body, he sees the same kind of changes at three to five weeks. “Of course, no treatment is permanent, but improvements from BBL® HEROic™ do last a long time,” he says.
Depending on the patient’s specific concerns, experts often recommend a short series of three treatments in succession about a month apart. “In practice, we see that patients who get as few as one BBL® HEROic™ treatment a year will look younger in five or 10 years than they did before we began the series of treatments,” confirms Dr. Ibrahim. “My advice to patients is that once the corrective series of treatments is complete, one BBL® HEROic™ treatment per year will help them maintain these results, and if you do more than that you will continue to improve the look and feel of the skin.”
Who is a good candidate?
Fortunately, many people can be a good candidate for BBL® HEROic™ thanks to its versatility. “We can change the filters [specialized bands of light for specific targets] and the energy levels on the fly to truly customize the treatment for a wide range of individuals,” confirms Dr. Ibrahim. “The best patient is someone that’s looking to even out the pigmentation of their skin, have smoother skin, have skin that’s more luminous—it’s an incredible way to revitalize skin, anywhere from head to toe.”
What makes this different from other technologies?
When looking at industry competitors, Dr. Ibrahim notes that most systems typically deliver energy at one pulse per second. BBL® HEROic™ differs from the industry standard in that it can deliver up to 10 or 11 pulses per second (depending on the treatment settings).
“What is so incredible about BBL® HEROic™ is that it uses a pulse position sensing mechanism that allows the user to feel comfortable while delivering pulses at such high rates without causing pulses to double stack (meaning two pulses in one spot), or leaving gaps between pulses,” explains Dr. Ibrahim. In layman’s terms, the handpiece can effortlessly adjust to the provider’s movement and speed, as well as the contours and curves of the patient’s body. This advanced technology ensures a more consistent treatment and comprehensive results, effectively addressing pigmentation issues at the source.
Is there any downtime or side effects?
This treatment, which only takes about 10 to 15 minutes, typically has minimal to no downtime.“What we do see is that if someone has a lot of pigmentation they want improved, the pigmentation will get darker with treatment and continue to darken until it [flakes off] at about day five, and so those patients with a considerable amount of undesired pigmentation will find that a little hard to cover up with tinted sunscreen or makeup, but it shouldn’t slow them down in any way.” Otherwise, there are no restrictions on activity and no wound care post-treatment.
The Bottom Line
According to Dr. Ibrahim, this treatment is almost too good to be true. “I always tell patients that if you used every product in the world every day for the rest of your life, it wouldn’t do what one BBL® HEROic™ treatment can do—and I feel very strongly about that.”
The versatility of its abilities, the speed at which you can achieve results, the impact of those results, and the capacity to treat safely from head to toe in most skin types make this treatment beyond impressive. It’s more comfortable and more effective than other options, with less downtime for patients. With that said, it’s hard to find a negative to the treatment—especially since experts believe it has blown many competitors out of the water.
