Post Laser Pigment Problems, Then What? 2/2 Series

Good morning all.  This is the second part of a two part series on preventing and treating post laser pigment problems.  Preventing them is MUCH easier than treating them, so please read the first part first. 🙂  This is generally called post-inflammatory hyperpigmentation (PIH).

Treating post laser PIH

• Keep all Light, Especially UVA off the Area.  You’re thinking what??? I can’t wear a head covering (in the west anyway) all the time.  Remember, UVA goes through window glass, through clouds, etc. It has nothing to do with “sun” really. It’s present all day long. So…the best sunscreen UVA blocker (they all block UVB) is zinc oxide at about 15-20%. Even that won’t block it all. The trick is to find one you like that goes with your skin tone.  Please see some in our shop.  You’ll want to double layer it. And putting make-up over that helps.  I like the Jane Iredale mineral powders for this.
• Know Your Skin Type.  The darker your skin type, the longer it will take to improve PIH generally.  If the PIH is bad, you’ll need a Dermatologist to help you.  Dermatologists are straight forward on skin types.  A Type I is a red head, very pale with almost no pigment.  A Type VI is very dark, with lots of good melanin protection with ancestors from very hot; usually equatorial places. In between is the rest of us  – mostly mixes of all sorts of genes.  We are all beautiful!   The darker your skin and eye color the more likely you are to have PIH after any skin injury or procedure.
• Time of Year.  If you have this problem going into the summer, just expect it will be harder. The sunscreens, hats, and staying out of the sun become even more important. I tell our patients that the goal in the summer is to hold the problem steady. We can make more progress starting about 2 months after the summer solstice.  About 20% ish Zinc oxide sunscreen is the best sunscreen, but even that can’t block all that UV; covered is better.
• Hydroquinones.  These can be very helpful, if used correctly and for short periods of time.  In the U.S., they are prescription and you’ll need your doctor to help you. If you are in India, please don’t use more than 4%, and be very careful because many of the formulations on the web could be harmful.
• Plant Based Lighteners.  There are a ton of these now, and none are perfect. We formulated one (Uneven Pigment Fighter) that’s in our shop. It works the best of the ones we’ve used.  You can try several but use them one at a time for 2-3 months so you can really tell if it’s working for you. Start with once a day and gradually progress to twice a day. Remember any skin care product can cause irritation or an allergy so stop right away if you see this.

Hope this helps,

Dr. Brandith