Treatment Process
Before, During and After Laser Undo Tattoo
Before Treatment:Patient will be asked about their medical and tattoo's history. Then Operators will obtain a written consent from the patient prior to the treatment or test patch. If topical anesthetic (e.g. EMLA, BLT) is not requested. Cold compresses will be used until the pain ceases. Alternatively, topical anesthetics will be applied at least 30 minutes prior to the procedure. Then Operators take photographs of the treatment area for future reference. Finally, Operators will provide verbal and written advice on after-care of the treated area.
During Treatment:The impact of the energy from the laser pulse is similar to the snap of a small rubber band on the skin. This selective breaking up of ink particles is shown as "Frosting" a sign of vaporization, color change or bruising. Frosting is an immediate reaction. Bruising usually has 10-15 minutes of delay whilst blistering may take hours to be seen. Frosting is a good indicator that laser will work for that treated ink.
Skin Response during and after Treatment :
Frosting from vaporization of the ink particle usually disappears soon after treatment
Heat and redness: Normally resolves in 24 hours.
Bruise or Swelling usually resolve in a week.
Scabs usually falls in 1-2 weeks
If there is Damage to the natural skin such as crust, blister, or burn: Cool the area thoroughly for pain relief. It is recommended an antibiotic ointment be used to facilitate the recovery.They may take several weeks to recuperate.
What to expect:Gradual lightening of tattoo over time and treatment sessions. Some people reports immediate lightening especially those old tattoos eg: 15-20 years old. Most of the tattoo start to lighten about 6 weeks after the treatment, and continue to fade even after a year. Optimum lightening probably occurs between 3-4 month. Therefore:
Treatment Interval:
A minimum of 6 weeks should elapse between treatments, preferably 10-12 weeks so as wound can be healed completely. It is difficult to predict the number of sessions necessary for tattoo removal. Often the initial treatment will result in a more dramatic removal than subsequent sessions. Kirby Desai scale may help to predict Number of treatments ( http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2923953/ ) Less pigmented and region closer to the heart's tattoos will be removed faster. However, large volume and deeper tattoos will require more treatment sessions. If the depth is less than 0.92 mm, then 87.5% improvements is seen. At a depth of 1.78 mm or greater, an average of only 81.5% improvement is observed. Amateur tattoos will clear faster than professional ones.Treatment using the 532nm wavelength for red ink, with 3 sessions up to 75% has been reported. At some stage after a course of treatments plateau of tattoo removal is likely to occur. A shadow or faint residual may result.