An infected razor bump, or a series of bumps, can look like a bad case of acne. Treatment for this condition is fairly easy – and can also be extremely effective, says Dr. Todd Minars of Minars Dermatology, based in Hollywood, Florida. Here, he explains how lasers can solve the problem without too much fuss.
The official term for razor bumps is Pseduofolliculitis Barbae. It occurs more commonly in people with coarse hair. Often African-American men get razor bumps on their beard and neck, and women with coarser hair tend to get razor bumps in the bikini area.
The problem with very coarse hair is that when you shave it creates a sharp point. That point will be strong enough to re-pierce the skin, so it ends up tunneling under and becoming an ingrown hair. The whole area then tends to become irritated, and sometimes you even get acne-like eruptions with pustules.
Original Methods Less Effective
Originally what we used to do is treat razor bumps with similar products we use to treat acne, like benzoyl peroxide. We would try to alter people’s shaving habits, encouraging them to use special razors to make them less likely to get razor bumps. But now that we have laser hair removal it has been a real game changer in treating this condition.
At its best, lasers get rid of tremendous amounts of hair, but after just a few treatments they thin the hair. You can imagine what will happen, therefore, if the cause of razor bumps is coarse hair. The laser will start to thin the hair out and make it less coarse. So you will quickly see a dramatic improvement.
Different People, Different Results
Laser hair removal, however, has different results for different people. And as a general rule, we want them to wait at least a month between treatments. If you do it too soon, you target the hair follicle, which has color as there is a hair in it. If you treat them before there is a hair back in the follicle, you are really wasting the treatment.
How many treatment sessions you will need depends on your goal. If your goal is to eliminate all the bumps visible on a man’s beard, which means you want to get rid of the bumps but not the beard itself, you’ll need two to four treatments. When a woman has hair on her face and wants to eliminate it entirely, that will take five or six treatments.
It’s important to keep in mind that laser hair removal will sting. It is definitely doable, but how much it will hurt depends on the person. I have people who sit there likes it’s nothing and read their magazine, I have people who cannot tolerate it unless we have applied a numbing cream first. The denser the hair, the more you feel. So, a man’s beard would hurt more than a woman with a few hairs on her chin she wants to get rid of.
The information in the article is not intended to substitute for the medical expertise and advice of your healthcare provider. We encourage you to discuss any decisions about treatment or care with an appropriate healthcare provider.
