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Laser Treatment of Freckles,
Age Spots and Pigmented Lesions
The Medlite C6™ laser is designed to treat superficial
brown blemishes and is also effective in removing other brown
marks like café au lait patches, Nevus of Ito, Nevus
of Ota, freckles and flat pigmented moles. A few kinds of
pigmentation (in particular melasma) do not improve in response
to any form of laser treatment.
Melanin is what gives our skin its color. Pigmented lesions
are dark in color simply because melanin is abnormally concentrated
in one area of the skin. High concentrations of melanin can
be due to various factors. Some types are present at birth,
but most occur with age or as a result of overexposure to
the sun's damaging rays.
Lentigines or age spots are premature ageing brown marks,
which appear on the backs of hands and the face. Sunburn freckles
are the result of sun damage and occur on the back, upper
chest and shoulders. Most are harmless but all are ageing
and may be unattractive.
Cafe au lait, Nevus of Ota, Mongolian spots and other flat
pigmented birthmarks are localized areas of increased pigmentation
in the skin, which are present at birth.
Although most brown spots are easily ignored, many are quite
conspicuous and can detract from your skin's natural beauty.
Most brown birthmarks will fade with treatment but some recur.
These may require additional treatment to keep pigmentation
at bay. Brown age spots often fade or disappear with a single
treatment.
Thanks to the Medlite C6 laser, you (usually) don't have
to live with unwanted freckles, age spots, or pigmented lesions
for the rest of your life. Dr. Kevin Smith is helping people
of all ages fade and eliminate marks that, for a variety of
reasons, they no longer want on their bodies. "This laser
will allow us to safely help patients look and feel better."
"Since my laser treatment I am no
longer self-conscious about the spots on my hand....my skin
is now perfectly clear."
What types of brown spots or
pigmented lesions will the Medlite remove?
The Medlite is most commonly used for removing brown age
spots, "liver spots", freckles and many brown birthmarks.
Dr. Smith will identify your specific type of lesion and explain
what can be done to help you look and feel better. We do not
use lasers for treating cancers or suspected cancers. If in
doubt, Dr. Smith will biopsy any suspicious spots to make
sure there is no skin cancer.
How much does it cost to have
freckles and age spots removed?
The fees for laser treatment of freckles and age spots starts
at $175 per treatment, and increase depending on the amount
of time needed. Dr. Smith can give you a price quote after
he has examined your freckles and age spots.
There is a $75 stand-by charge for appointments which are
missed or are cancelled with less than 24 hours notice.
How long are treatments?
Depending on the size and numbers of freckles and age spots,
treatments usually range from 15 to 45 minutes.
How does the Medlite laser remove
pigmented lesions?
Energy from the Medlite laser is very well absorbed by cells
containing excessive concentrations of pigment - and not well
absorbed by normal tissue - so the Medlite stimulates your
body to eliminate the unwanted excessive pigment while having
little or no effect on other tissues or on normal skin color.
If the area to be treated has a fresh sun tan or has been
treated with self-tanning lotion, it is best to wait a couple
of weeks for the tan to fade before having treatment, because
the tan will absorb and waste some of the laser energy intended
for the pigmented lesion. A fresh sun tan (or color from a
recent application of self-tanning lotion) could also absorb
enough laser energy to increase the risk of skin irritation
or blistering.
If you take ASA, alcohol or vitamin E during the week before
your pigmented lesions are treated with the Medlite laser
there might be a bit more bruising in the treated area.
Most people find that Medlite laser of pigmented blemishes
is not particularly painful - each pulse of laser light is
similar to the snap of a thin rubber band, or tiny specks
of hot bacon grease on the skin. There may be less discomfort
if a second treatment is needed, because as the freckles and
age spots fade there is less pigment to absorb laser energy.
Most patients do not require anesthesia, but ice packs, anesthetic
creams or local anesthetic can be used if necessary. If there
is a large or sensitive area to be treated, a couple of plain
Tylenol can be taken to raise your pain threshold somewhat
before laser treatment.
No other special preparation is needed. The high power of
the Medlite C6 allows large diameter, deeply penetrating laser
beams to be used, and will help to speed up the resolution
of your pigmented lesions.
What will happen after treatment?
For the first half-hour after laser treatment the treated
area looks pale or white, and may swell slightly. The treated
area may feel hot (like a sunburn) for a while after laser
treatment, and it might be red and swollen for the rest of
the day. There may be pinpoint bleeding for a few hours in
areas where there was a lot of pigment, and there probably
will be a bit of superficial bruising under the pigmented
blemishes. Over the next several days slight superficial blisters
or crusting may develop. This will resolve in about one week.
Your skin usually returns to normal in about 7 to 14 days.
Occasionally (depending on the severity of your sun damage)
the treated area may remain somewhat pink for two to four
weeks, and there may be some flaking or peeling during this
time. This is a normal process as the body works to eliminate
the pigmented blemishes.
There may be some lightening or darkening of the treated
for several months after laser treatment. This is usually
not very obvious. Protect the treated area from sun exposure
until the skin is completely healed and the skin color has
returned to normal.
Gentle cleansing of the skin and application of an antibiotic
ointment such as Polysporin ointment will help the treated
area heal quickly after treatment. Watch for unusual redness,
pain, or swelling which might be a sign of infection, and
please call us right away if you think an infection is developing.
Avoid picking at or irritating the skin after treatment.
How many treatments are required?
About 60%-80% of common freckles and age spots resolve after
one treatment. Some need a second treatment, and a few need
to be treated more than twice. Some blemishes do not disappear
completely, but will be significantly lighter in color after
treatment.
When Dr. Smith examines your freckles and age spots, he will
be able to give you an estimate of the number of treatments
which will be necessary to fade or remove them. Because there
is a great deal of variability in the size, depth and darkness
of freckles, age spots and pigmented nevi, and because there
is some variability in people's natural ability to clear away
pigment after laser treatment, it is not possible to "promise"
you that a certain result will happen after a fixed number
of treatments. Dr. Smith will explain what is likely to happen,
but he cannot precisely predict or guarantee what will happen
in any particular case. Dr. Smith will show you photos illustrating
the range of results, from fading through to complete disappearance
of the pigmented lesions.
How well your lesions respond depends on several factors.
Superficial lesions such as freckles and age spots tend to
respond more quickly as compared to deeper, more complex lesions
such as the nevus of Ota shown below.
Laser treatment will not prevent the development of new pigmented
blemishes. You can reduce the rate at which new pigmented
blemishes appear by using sunscreen and by protecting your
skin from the sun.
How long should I wait between
treatments?
It is best to wait at least 8 weeks between treatments so
that the maximum amount of fading can take place.
Will the freckles and age spots
disappear completely?
In many cases the freckles and age spots can be made to disappear
or fade to the point where you are the only person who can
find a trace of them, because you know where to look.
What are the risks of treatment?
In most cases, the laser treatment leads to satisfactory
fading or complete removal of the freckles and age spots without
significant side effects.
The most common problem is incomplete removal of brown spots
or pigmented nevi. Some spots are relatively resistant, although
there is almost always a worthwhile amount of improvement.
Scarring is very rare. Infection is also very rare and is
usually prevented or treated by using antibiotic creams like
Polysporin. Loss of pigment from normal skin is rare and usually
minimal.
You can reduce the chance of irregular tanning - and reduce
the chance that the freckles and age spots will come back
-- by protecting the treated area from sun exposure.
Hypopigmentation (lightening of the skin) or hyperpigmentation
(darkening of the skin) are quite infrequent, and are almost
always temporary.
Is laser treatment of freckles,
age spots and pigmented lesions covered by insurance?
Laser treatment of freckles, age spots and pigmented lesions
is not covered by insurance, but it is often a tax-deductible
medical expense.
If you want to get rid of freckles and age
spots, now is the time to take advantage of this new breakthrough
in laser technology. At the Niagara Falls Dermatology and
Skin Care Centre, we can help. Thanks to specialized laser
technology, we can safely fade your freckles and age spots
so there is little or no trace left.
Call
for an appointment Toll Free 866-707-3222
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