What might hydration affect during laser treatments?

Hydration plays a significant role in how the skin interacts with laser treatments, particularly in terms of laser energy absorption. When the skin is adequately hydrated, the water content in the skin can help to facilitate more efficient absorption of laser energy. This is crucial because lasers often target specific chromophores within the skin, such as melanin or hemoglobin, which can be influenced by the moisture level of the skin.

When skin is dehydrated, the altered texture and composition can lead to less effective absorption of the laser energy, potentially diminishing the effectiveness of the treatment. This can result in less optimal outcomes, such as requiring more sessions to achieve desired results or having an uneven treatment effect.

In contrast, other aspects like overall downtime after treatment, treatment costs, or changes to skin color are not directly influenced by hydration levels to the same extent. Hydration primarily impacts the dynamics of energy absorption, therefore making it the most relevant aspect in this context.