Years of sunshine leave a record on your skin: brown spots, freckling, redness, and broken capillaries that makeup can only cover. BBL, short for BroadBand Light, uses precisely filtered light to target that pigment and redness so your body can clear it away, revealing a more even, luminous complexion. Treatments take about 30 minutes with little to no downtime, and with regular maintenance, BBL is one of the most researched ways to keep skin looking younger over time.
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BBL, or BroadBand Light, is Sciton's advanced light-based photofacial. It delivers pulses of filtered light that are absorbed by the pigment in sun spots and the blood in visible vessels. That energy converts to heat, breaking up the unwanted pigment and collapsing small vessels without damaging the skin around them. Over the following days, brown spots darken and flake away and redness gradually fades, leaving a clearer, brighter, more even complexion. Sciton's HERO technology moves quickly and evenly across larger areas, making it easy to treat the chest, arms, and hands along with the face.
BBL can treat the face, neck, chest, shoulders, arms, and hands, anywhere the sun has left its mark.
BBL is a form of IPL (intense pulsed light), and both use filtered broadband light to target pigment and redness. Sciton's BBL platform gives your provider precise control over wavelength filters, pulse timing, and cooling, so treatments can be closely tailored to your skin and your concerns. We offer both options at Esthetics Center, and your nurse will recommend the one that best fits your skin and goals.
Every laser and light treatment at Esthetics Center begins with a consultation with a skilled nurse to discuss your goals, review your medical history, and take before and after photos to track your progress. On treatment day, your skin is cleansed, protective eyewear goes on, and a cool gel is applied. Your nurse then passes the BBL handpiece over the treatment area. Most full-face treatments take about 30 minutes, and numbing typically isn't needed.
Most patients describe each pulse as a quick, warm snap, similar to a rubber band. Built-in cooling keeps the skin comfortable, and settings can be adjusted to your comfort level.
Little to none. Your skin may look slightly pink and feel warm for a few hours. Over the next day or two, treated brown spots will darken, often looking like coffee grounds on the skin, before flaking off within about 7 to 10 days. Most patients return to work and makeup right away. Protect your skin with a broad-spectrum sunscreen of at least SPF 30 every day.
BBL is ideal for lighter to medium skin tones with sun damage, redness, or visible capillaries. Because it targets pigment, it isn't recommended for deeper skin tones or tanned skin. We ask that you avoid tanning, including self-tanner, for at least two weeks before treatment. If BBL isn't right for your skin, Moxi is a safe alternative for all skin tones. As a general practice, we do not perform medical esthetic treatments on pregnant women.
Most patients start with a series of two to three treatments spaced about four weeks apart. You'll see improvement after your first session, with results building after each one. From there, one to two maintenance treatments per year keep your skin clear and even.
Research suggests it can. In a study led by Stanford dermatology researchers, patients who received regular BBL treatments over many years had skin whose gene activity more closely resembled younger skin, and their skin was rated as looking younger as well. That's why we think of BBL as more than a one-time fix. Consistent maintenance is one of the best investments you can make in your skin long term.
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Dr. Rice, our cosmetic surgeon at the medical spa in El Dorado Hills, CA, received his medical degree from Loma Linda University in Southern California, where he also completed an internship in general surgery and specialty surgical training in Otolaryngology—head and neck surgery. Dr. Rice went on to complete advanced training in Facial Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery at the Institute of Facial Plastic Surgery. He is double board-certified by the American Board of Otolaryngology, head and neck surgery, and the American Board of Facial Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery.
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