Do you want your tattoo removed, the laser way
It is not unusual to later regret having a tattoo, which is why there are various methods of tattoo removal at your disposal should you decide you hate your tattoo and it is causing you immense embarrassment. But how effective is laser tattoo removal and how exactly does laser treatment remove tattoo ink from the skin?
What is laser tattoo removal treatment?
Laser treatment is the most popular method of removing unwanted tattoos from the skin. It works by firing pulses of intense light at the tattoo, which breaks down the ink in the deeper layers of skin, thus enabling the ink molecules to slowly disperse and be absorbed by the body. With each laser treatment, the tattoo will fade and once enough treatments have taken place, the tattoo should disappear completely, although the removal process may take several months before the tattoo is removed completely.
Is laser tattoo removal treatment suitable for everyone?
Laser treatment can be used to remove all kinds of tattoos, including professionally done tattoos, amateur tattoos, traumatic tattoos, and even medical and cosmetic tattoos—basically if you have any type of tattoo you dislike, laser treatment can be used to remove it.
Is laser treatment effective for all tattoos?
The end result of laser tattoo removal is largely dependent on how large the tattoo is and what colored ink was used. Older tattoos are generally easier to remove via laser treatment as the ink is less dense. Small tattoos are easier to remove and will require fewer treatments. Conversely, large or very extensive tattoos will need many laser treatment sessions.
Certain colors are more difficult to remove than others: blue and black are easy to treat, but some colors, specifically whites, oranges, yellows, reds, and green inks containing fluorescent dyes are very difficult to remove. Lighter colors can also darken when treated with lasers: skin tones often darken and red ink can sometimes turn black, which is why a small skin test is usually recommended prior to a full treatment session.
Which tattoos respond best to laser treatments?
Amateur tattoos usually respond well to laser tattoo removal treatments. This is because amateur inks tend not to be injected as deeply as tattoos done using professional tattoo equipment. Tattoos containing only black ink are also easier to remove as black ink is much easier to break down using lasers.
What are the advantages of tattoo removal laser treatment?
Laser treatment has many advantages. The process is very effective for the majority of tattoos and if performed by a competent tattoo removal expert, a tattoo can be completely removed in its entirety, which is the optimum result for most people. Modern laser treatment procedures operate using several different frequencies of light, so a range of different colors can be targeted over the course of several treatments without causing any damage to the surrounding areas of skin.
What are the disadvantages of tattoo laser removal treatments?
The biggest disadvantage of laser tattoo removal is the cost. The price of treatment will vary according to the clinic you attend, but in general laser treatment sessions are very costly and if you require a large number of sessions, for example if you have a tattoo that covers an extensive area of your body or the tattoo contains multiple colors, you could easily find that the cost of laser tattoo removal treatment stretches into thousands of dollars, which is beyond the reach of many people.
Is tattoo laser treatment very painful?
Everyone’s individual perception of pain is different, so what hurts like hell for one person might only feel like a mild stinging sensation to another. However, the general consensus of opinion is that laser treatments to remove tattoos are fairly painful and likely to cause a lot more discomfort than the original tattoo.
But try not to worry too much as you will not be expected to suffer during the tattoo removal treatment: local anesthetic cream will be applied to numb the treatment area and reduce the level of discomfort for smaller tattoos. However, if the treatment area is very extensive or the tattoo is in a sensitive place (for example on the face), you might be given the option of being put to sleep using a general anesthetic to save you from suffering a lot of pain.
How long will the tattoo removal take?
Small tattoos might only take a few treatments before the tattoo has disappeared, but larger tattoos will take as many as ten sessions of laser treatment to achieve the maximum effect. The treatment results will not immediately be evident and your tattoo is not going to vanish overnight. It usually takes a few weeks for the body’s immune system to process and remove the ink particles, so it will take time for the tattoo to begin to fade.
