Efficacy of 1064 nm long-pulsed neodymium-doped yttrium-aluminum-garnet laser versus 755 nm Alexandrite laser for axillary hair reduction in skin of color: A prospective comparison study

Objectives: To assess the efficacy of LP Nd: YAG (long-pulsed neodymium-doped yttrium-aluminum-garnet) laser and LP Alexandrite laser for hair reduction of axilla in skin of color. Material and Methods: 12 patients completed the study and all were treated at 6-week intervals for 4 sessions. Evaluation based on patient satisfaction scores and trichoscopy was carried out for the patients. The safety of the laser was evaluated by noting down adverse effects. Results: 10 individuals on the LP Nd: YAG side and 8 individuals on the LP Alexandrite side showed an improvement of 50–75% by investigators global assessment which was similar to the patient satisfaction scores. Post-treatment erythema was the only side effect noted. Conclusion: In skin of color individuals for LHR in the axilla in this study, both 1064 nm LP Nd: YAG and 755 nm LP Alexandrite lasers showed significant improvement with numerically higher improvement in the LP Nd: YAG-treated side. Our study highlights that both the lasers are safe and efficacious in Indian skin types. Future studies with large sample sizes and long follow-up are warranted to substantiate these findings.