excel HR Laser hair removal
Dual-wavelength laser hair removal designed for every skin tone — including darker and tanned skin — with sessions from five minutes.
Key facts
- Who you’ll see
-
- Dr. Svetlana Tagaeva Medical Director
- Where
- CREAMÉ, 350 Al Wasl Road, Jumeirah 1, Dubai
- Session
- 5–60 minutes, by area
- Numbing
- Optional, for sensitive areas
- Downtime
- None to minimal
- Course
- 6–8 sessions, 4–8 weeks apart
- Device
- excel HR by Cutera, USA Dual-wavelength laser, 755 nm and 1064 nm
excel HR by Cutera, USA
Dual-wavelength laser, 755 nm and 1064 nm
What excel HR is for
Unwanted hair — the shaving, waxing, ingrown-hair cycle you'd rather retire. On the face or anywhere on the body, on any skin tone.
Concerns it may help with
How excel HR works
A dual-wavelength medical laser: a 755 nm wavelength suited to finer, lighter hair on lighter skin, and a 1064 nm wavelength that penetrates deeper with far less absorption by skin pigment — which is what makes it suitable for darker and tanned skin. The light is absorbed by the hair's pigment and disables the follicle, while a continuously cooled sapphire window protects the skin.
A session, step by step
- At the first visit we look at your skin tone, your hair's colour and thickness, any recent sun or tanning, your health and your medicines, then choose the wavelength and settings.
- Shave the area beforehand, but never wax or pluck: the laser needs the root in place. The skin is cleansed and dried, with no make-up or self-tan left on it; numbing cream is optional for sensitive areas.
- Everyone in the room wears eye protection. The cooled sapphire window of the handpiece moves over the skin pulse by pulse, each a warm rubber-band snap: 5 to 10 minutes for small areas, 45 to 60 for legs or a back.
- The skin is cooled again, and sunscreen goes on any exposed skin. Some redness around the follicles is common for a few hours.
What to expect
How it feels
Small areas take 5–10 minutes, underarms or a face 15–20, legs or a back 45–60. Each pulse is a warm rubber-band snap, taken down considerably by the cooling; numbing cream is optional for sensitive areas.
Downtime
None to minimal — a few hours of mild redness around the follicles. Strict SPF before and after, no waxing or plucking between sessions (shaving is fine), and no saunas or hard workouts for a day or two.
How many sessions
Hair grows in cycles, so a proper course is 6–8 sessions — spaced 4–6 weeks apart on the face, 6–8 on the body. Treated hairs shed within 1–3 weeks, reduction is visible after 2–3 sessions, and one or two touch-ups a year maintain the result.
Who it may not suit
We go through your health and medicines first, because excel HR may not suit you, or may need to wait, if any of these apply:
- You are pregnant or breastfeeding.
- You are being treated for skin cancer or having chemotherapy, or the area has had radiotherapy.
- The area is tanned, recently in strong sun or self-tanned: we wait for it to fade, or adjust the settings.
- You take a medicine that makes skin sensitive to light, such as some antibiotics, or have taken isotretinoin for acne in the last six months.
- There is an infection, a rash or dermatitis in the area.
- You tend to form keloid or raised scars, or have vitiligo or a tendency to darker or lighter patches of skin.
- You have diabetes or a bleeding disorder, or take blood thinners.
- You get cold sores, or have had shingles, in the area: treatment is still possible, with preventive antiviral medicine first.
- There is a tattoo, permanent make-up or a mole that needs checking in the area: we keep clear of it.
- Your hair is very light, grey or red: laser responds poorly to it.
Risks and side effects
Common and short-lived: redness and small bumps around the follicles, usually gone within hours, sometimes swelling, and occasionally bruising, more likely if you take blood thinners.
Less common: darker or lighter patches, more likely on deeper skin tones and after sun or a tan; crusting; and a cold-sore flare in people who get them. Laser can also stimulate more hair growth in or near the area instead of less, which the maker notes is more likely on the face and neck, and in people of Mediterranean, Middle Eastern or South Asian heritage; adjusting the settings helps prevent it.
Rare, but important to know: burns or blisters, which can leave a scar, a small dent or a change in texture, and hairs turning grey. Burns are more likely on recently tanned skin.
Aftercare
- Strict sun protection for four weeks before and after each session: SPF 50 on exposed skin, reapplied through the day, and clothing over treated areas where you can.
- No tanning, sunbeds or self-tan during the course; if you do tan, tell us before your session.
- In the Dubai summer, or before a beach holiday, if strict sun protection isn't realistic for an area, we pause and pick up again later.
- For a day or two: no saunas or hard workouts.
- Between sessions, shave if you need to, but don't wax, pluck or use hair-removal creams.
- Let treated hairs shed on their own over one to three weeks.
- Message us if you notice blistering, crusting, or a patch of skin that turns darker or lighter.
How pricing works
We don't publish prices. The cost depends on the area, its size and the number of sessions: usually a course of six to eight, then one or two touch-ups a year. We plan it together at the consultation, so you know the full course and its cost before you start.
Our take
Laser hair removal is only honest when it's matched to your skin — and this platform exists so we never have to force one wavelength onto every skin tone.
Very light, grey or red hair responds poorly to any laser, and we'll tell you so rather than sell you a course that won't work. Recent tanning means we wait or adjust — a burn is never worth a saved week. Where the real concern is redness or visible vessels rather than hair, the same platform treats those too, and we'll point you to the right version of it.
Questions people ask
Does laser hair removal work on darker skin?
Yes, with the right wavelength and settings. The 1064 nm wavelength is far less absorbed by skin pigment, and a 2026 review describes the long-pulsed 1064 nm laser as the standard for hair removal in darker skin. The risk of pigment change is still higher, so we set the energy carefully, cool the skin well and plan sun protection with you.
How long does laser hair removal last?
It's a long-term reduction, not the removal of every hair. In trials that followed people for at least one full hair-growth cycle, hair was reduced by about 30% to 84% over the long term, depending on the laser and the area, with the smallest change on the face. One or two touch-ups a year maintain the result.
Is laser hair removal suitable for men?
Yes. The back, shoulders, chest and the neck or beard line can all be treated; on the beard, decide on the shape first, because the reduction is long-term. The 1064 nm wavelength is also used for razor bumps (pseudofolliculitis barbae). In a study of 50 service members treated with laser for razor bumps, most saw a marked reduction, but in most the bumps came back, often within six months, so touch-ups are usual.
Can I have laser hair removal in the Dubai summer, or with a tan?
In summer, yes, if the treated skin stays out of the sun. A tan, recent sun or self-tan raises the risk of burns and pigment changes, even with the 1064 nm wavelength we use on tanned skin, so we wait for a tan to fade or adjust the settings. We ask for strict sun protection for four weeks before and after each session; where that isn't realistic, we pause until after the summer or your holiday.
Sources
- Cutera. excel HR: indications for use, contraindications, warnings and precautions. Usage and safety guide.
- A prospective multi-center study of a novel dual-wavelength laser for hair removal (excel HR). ClinicalTrials.gov NCT02536092.
- Krasniqi A, McClurg DP, Gillespie KJ, Rajpara S. Efficacy of lasers and light sources in long-term hair reduction: a systematic review. J Cosmet Laser Ther. 2022;24(1–5):1–8.
- Lee SS, Burgener MM, Sayyed AA, et al. Noninvasive cosmetic treatments for Fitzpatrick IV–VI: a narrative review of safety and efficacy guidelines. Plast Reconstr Surg Glob Open. 2026;14(3):e7541.
- Nguyen L, Kimmig W, Hammes S, Schneider SW, Seeber N. Complications of laser and energy-based procedures in dermatology: classification, management, and prevention. J Dtsch Dermatol Ges. 2026;24(3):372–381.
- Kravitz S, Jones J, Raffetto E, Stanley M, Cho S. Evaluating the short- and long-term outcomes of laser hair removal for the management of pseudofolliculitis barbae in a military population. Mil Med. 2026;191(9–10):e1810–e1816.
Updated 24 October 2026