ACQUISITION (1) (Details) (USD $)	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2011	Dec. 31, 2010	Dec. 31, 2012 Iridexs global aesthetics business unit [Member] Customer Relationships [Member]	Dec. 31, 2012 Iridexs global aesthetics business unit [Member] Other Intangible Assets [Member]	Dec. 31, 2012 Iridexs global aesthetics business unit [Member] Other Intangible Assets [Member] Minimum [Member]	Dec. 31, 2012 Iridexs global aesthetics business unit [Member] Other Intangible Assets [Member] Maximum [Member]	Dec. 31, 2012 Iridexs global aesthetics business unit [Member] Goodwill [Member]
Acquired Finite-Lived Intangible Assets [Line Items]
Useful life of acquired intangible assets			5 years		11 months	5 years
Tax life of acquired intangible assets				15 years			15 years
Revenue prior to acquisition	$ 10,800,000	$ 11,400,000
Income prior to acquisition	$ 469,000	$ 1,400,000