What Are The Clinical Advantages Of Using A 16Mm Large-Diameter Circular Spot Size? Boost Depth & Speed For Hair Removal

The clinical advantage of a 16mm large-diameter circular spot size lies in its ability to simultaneously increase the effective depth of laser penetration and significantly reduce treatment duration. This specification is engineered specifically to address the challenges of treating expansive body areas, such as the back and legs, by optimizing both optical physics and workflow efficiency.

Core Takeaway A 16mm spot size minimizes the scattering of light within tissue, allowing energy to reach deep-rooted hair follicles that smaller spots often fail to impact. This optical advantage, combined with wider surface coverage, boosts clinical efficacy on thick hair while drastically shortening procedure times.

The Physics of Deep Tissue Penetration

Reducing Optical Scattering

The most critical technical advantage of a 16mm spot size is the reduction of scattering loss. When laser light enters the skin, photons naturally scatter in all directions.

Improving Energy Delivery

With a smaller spot size, a significant portion of the energy scatters laterally and is lost before it can penetrate deeply. A larger 16mm window creates a broader column of light, ensuring that the central photons are "insulated" by the surrounding light.

Targeting Deep-Rooted Follicles

This reduction in scattering facilitates deeper effective penetration into the dermis. This is clinically vital for treating areas like the back or legs, where terminal hair follicles are often located deep within the subcutaneous tissue.

Operational Efficiency for Large Zones

Accelerated Workflow

From an operational standpoint, a 16mm spot size drastically improves patient turnover rates. By covering a larger surface area with each pulse, the total number of pulses required to treat a full back or leg is significantly reduced.

Reduced Operator Fatigue

Because fewer handpiece movements are required to cover the same surface area, the labor intensity for the operator decreases. This allows for consistent application without the fatigue associated with high-repetition movements used with smaller spot sizes.

Uniform Energy Application

The 16mm geometry aids in the uniform distribution of energy. By covering wider swaths of tissue, it helps minimize the risk of "skipped" areas or uneven heating that can occur when trying to manually stitch together hundreds of small-diameter pulses.

Understanding the Trade-offs

Precision vs. Speed

While the 16mm spot is superior for large, flat surfaces, it presents challenges on smaller or highly contoured areas. The large diameter makes it difficult to maintain full contact on curved anatomy, such as the ankles, shinbones, or the chin.

Selecting the Right Tool

Using a large spot size on intricate areas can lead to light leakage or poor coupling. Therefore, the 16mm handpiece should be viewed as a specialist tool for volume and depth, rather than a universal applicator for all body parts.

Making the Right Choice for Your Goal

When integrating a 16mm spot size into your clinical protocols, consider the following based on patient needs:

If your primary focus is Clinical Efficacy on Thick Skin: Use the 16mm spot to ensure laser energy penetrates deeply enough to disable terminal hair follicles anchored in the lower dermis.
If your primary focus is Practice Efficiency: Deploy the 16mm spot for back and leg treatments to reduce chair time and increase the number of patients treated per day.
If your primary focus is Patient Comfort: Utilize the efficiency of the large spot to shorten the duration of painful sessions on sensitive, large body areas.

Ultimately, the 16mm spot size transforms hair removal on large areas from a tedious process into a rapid, deep-penetrating procedure.

Summary Table:

Clinical Feature	Advantage of 16mm Spot Size	Benefit for Clinic
Penetration Depth	Reduces optical scattering; energy reaches deeper dermis	Effective treatment for deep-rooted follicles
Treatment Speed	Covers larger surface area per pulse	Faster patient turnover and higher revenue
Energy Delivery	More uniform distribution across tissue	Reduced risk of skipped areas or uneven results
Operator Comfort	Fewer manual handpiece movements required	Decreased physical fatigue for practitioners
Patient Experience	Significantly shorter treatment sessions	Enhanced comfort during large-area procedures

Revolutionize Your Clinic’s Efficiency with BELIS Technology

At BELIS, we specialize in professional-grade medical aesthetic equipment designed exclusively for high-end clinics and premium salons. Our advanced laser systems—including Diode Hair Removal, CO2 Fractional, Nd:YAG, and Pico lasers—are engineered with precision spot sizes like the 16mm diameter to maximize treatment depth and minimize chair time.

Beyond hair removal, our portfolio offers a complete aesthetic solution, from body sculpting (EMSlim, Cryolipolysis, RF Cavitation) to specialized care (HIFU, Microneedle RF, Hydrafacial systems, and Skin Testers). Partnering with BELIS means equipping your practice with the tools to deliver superior clinical outcomes and unparalleled patient satisfaction.

Ready to upgrade your practice’s performance?

References

Nicola Zerbinati, Francesca Satolli. Combined laser assisted treatment for permanent hair removal for skin types <scp>I‐V</scp> with Alexandrite 755 nm and <scp>ND</scp> : <scp>YAG</scp> 1064 nm lasers. DOI: 10.1111/dth.14599

This article is also based on technical information from Belislaser Knowledge Base .