Can Laser Hair Removal Cause More Hair Growth?
Yes. It can happen.
It’s called paradoxical hypertrichosis. Instead of reducing hair, laser or light-based hair removal can sometimes cause increased hair growth in or around the treated area.
It sounds strange. You get laser to have less hair, not more. But paradoxical hair growth is a documented side effect of laser hair removal.
We’ve also seen it in our own electrolysis practice. We’ve had clients come to us after laser with increased hair growth on the face and on the body.
What is paradoxical hypertrichosis?
Paradoxical hypertrichosis means that hair growth increases after laser or light-based hair removal instead of decreasing.
The new growth may appear in the treated area or around it. Some older reports describe fine, darker hair developing close to areas that were treated.
It doesn’t happen to everyone. But it does happen.
How common is it?
This is harder to answer because studies have reported very different numbers.
A 2021 systematic review and meta-analysis included 9,733 patients from 22 studies. The overall rate of paradoxical hypertrichosis was about 3%, but the results varied a lot between the individual studies. The researchers also found a strong association with treatment on the face and neck. Outside the face and neck, PH was reported in only 0.08% of cases in that analysis.
A newer study looked at 7,381 women who had laser hair removal and found increased hair growth in 25 patients, or 0.34%. In that particular study, the upper arm was the most common location, followed by the area around the nipples.
So we don’t think there is one percentage that can honestly be given to every person considering laser.
The numbers change depending on the study, the population and the area being treated.
Why does laser sometimes cause more hair growth?
We don’t know for sure.
One theory is that laser energy that isn’t sufficient to destroy a follicle may sometimes stimulate it instead. Researchers have also proposed changes involving inflammation, blood supply around the follicle, and the hair growth cycle.
These are proposed explanations. The exact mechanism behind paradoxical hypertrichosis is still not fully understood.
Where does it happen?
The face and neck come up frequently in the research.
In the large 2021 meta-analysis, paradoxical hypertrichosis was associated with treatment of the face and neck and was rarely reported elsewhere.
That doesn’t mean it can only happen there. The 2024 study found cases on the upper arms, around the nipples, cheeks, jawline, back, abdomen, legs, neck, and forearms.
We’ve personally seen increased hair growth after laser on both the face and the body. You can see one of these cases in our before and after gallery.
Can electrolysis remove hair that grew after laser?
Yes.
Electrolysis works very differently from laser. We treat one hair follicle at a time.
A very fine probe is inserted into the natural opening of the follicle and energy is delivered directly to the area responsible for hair growth. Once a follicle is successfully treated, it can no longer produce a hair.
Electrolysis also doesn’t depend on the hair being dark. That means we can treat dark, light, red, gray and white hairs.
We regularly work with clients who previously had laser hair removal, including people who noticed more hair afterward.
Why we choose electrolysis
Paradoxical hair growth is one of the reasons we don’t recommend laser at TS Electrolysis.
We prefer a method where we can treat each unwanted hair individually and permanently.
If you had laser hair removal and ended up with more hair than you started with, you can show us the area at your first appointment. We can look at the hair growth and talk about what electrolysis can do for it.
Sources:
TS Electrolysis
Vancouver, Washington
Permanent hair removal serving Vancouver, Portland, and surrounding areas.
