Skin pigmentation is one of the most annoying and awful-looking skin issues. People have suffered from freckles, sunspots, and other forms of pigmentation on their skins for a long time and have used various creams and serums to almost no avail. Laser treatment, however, has provided drastic results when removing pigmentation. But the question is, can laser treatment remove pigmentation permanently?
Laser treatment can indeed remove various skin pigmentation permanently. Once skin pigmentation has been removed by laser treatment, it will not return. But this is not all, as due to other reasons, the pigmentation can return since laser treatment can not stop new pigmentation from reappearing.
Let’s take a detailed look at how laser treatment works to remove skin pigmentation and its other aspects.
Is laser pigment removal a permanent solution for pigmentation?
Some of you might notice freckles or any other kind of skin discoloration appearing on your skin out of nowhere. These spots are called hyperpigmentation which is a skin problem due to the presence of an excessive level of melanin in the skin. Pigmentation can be caused because of a lot of reasons such as exposure to UV, genetics, etc.
No matter why they are caused, it is almost always unwanted by the people having them and they want it gone as soon as possible. They also want these spots to be gone permanently, so they don’t have to deal with them year after year with no apparent result. This is where laser pigmentation removal comes into play.
Laser therapy to remove pigment is not only the best way to go about it, but it is also the method that removes pigmentation permanently. Once a particular pigmentation has been removed from your skin, it will never reappear. This will also ensure the process is without any massive pain or difficulty.
To fully understand why laser can treat hyperpigmentation permanently, let’s take a look at the type of laser treatments and how they work.
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Ablative Laser Treatments
Ablative laser skin pigmentation removal works by completely destroying the skin’s surface where pigmentation is present. Directing the laser onto the pigmented skin, this method heats the skin up so much that the surface of the skin is vaporized. This stimulates the collagen to form on the skin, which causes new skin tissue to grow. It works very fast and has dramatic results, but the recovery time is slower.
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Non-ablative laser treatments
Non-ablative laser treatments are a lot less invasive than their counterparts. They are also less drastic than ablative treatments. They work by keeping the skin’s surface intact and heating up the deeper-lying pigmented tissues. As a result, new collagen is formed, and the skin becomes tighter and has a better tone than before. Although the result is not as dramatic as the aforementioned ablative method, it has a faster recovery time.
Apart from these, there are two other types of hyperpigmentation laser treatment. They are:
1. Non-fractionated Laser Treatment
This treatment targets the entire pigmented portion of the skin and treats it. It takes a longer time to work and covers a larger area. This process is suitable for deeper pigmentations. So they have to be a little more invasive than fractionated laser treatment. Because the non-fractionated treatment works deeper, it takes quite some time to recover from the procedure.
2. Fractionated Laser Treatment
Fractionated laser treatment Covers shorter areas of the pigmented skin and works on them separately. This procedure is suitable for superficial spots and pigmentation which are not very deep. So the process isn’t as invasive as non-fractionated laser treatment. It also takes a shorter time to complete and recover from.
Once these procedures are followed, the pigmented tissues in the skin disappear completely. So, there is no doubt that laser treatment cures pigmentation permanently. But it will not stop pigmentation from appearing again on the skin. When that happens, you have to take laser treatment again to remove them.
What are the main types of pigmentation?
The problem with pigmentation on the skin is that there are a lot of pigmentation types, all of which have to be treated accordingly. The main types of pigmentation appearing on people’s skin are:
- Freckles
- Sunspots
- Melasma
- Hori’s naevus
- Age spots
- Post-acne skin pigmentation
- Post-inflammatory hyperpigmentation
What are the reasons for pigmentation?
Pigmentation can appear on your skin for a lot of reasons. They are:
- Lack of cortisol hormone
- Hormonal changes during pregnancy or puberty
- Thyroid disorder
- Sun Damage
- Genetics
- Lack of Vitamin B-12 and folic acid
- Taking photosensitive medicines
How much does laser treatment for removing pigmentation cost?
The cost of laser pigmentation removal varies according to the treatment type and the amount of skin that is to be treated. Usually, ablative treatments cost more than non-ablative ones. On average, each session of ablative laser treatment costs $2300 while non-ablative laser treatments cost around $1000 per session.
Final Words
Pigmentation on the skin is an eyesore and causes a person a lot of problems and insecurities. So, it is best to have these spots removed as soon as possible, while also ensuring they are gone forever. This is why a lot of people taking laser treatments ask the pros, “Can laser treatment remove pigmentation permanently?” If you follow the correct procedures and go through treatment as per the doctor’s orders, you will not have to deal with pigmentation ever again.
FAQs
1. Is laser harmful to the face?
A lot of people don’t want to go through laser pigmentation removal on their faces because they think it is harmful to their faces. But the reality is it completely safe for your skin for you to go through laser treatment to remove pigmentation. Yes, you may have some swelling or mild redness on your skin, but otherwise, it does no lasting damage.
2. How many laser treatments are needed for pigmentation?
The number of sessions you need to remove pigmentation from your skin depends on the pigmentation type and the treatment. On average, it takes 6 sessions after every 3-4 weeks to permanently remove pigmentation.
3. Is laser for the face painful?
Another reason people feel scared to take laser treatment to remove facial pigmentation is that they think it hurts too much. But the pain caused by laser treatment is minimal and is compared to a rubber band snapping on the skin. Even this pain goes away after a few minutes as your skin adjusts to it.
