Why Is Laser Tattoo Removal So Effective?

Perhaps you’re not as thrilled with your tattoo as you were the day you first got it and you want to have it erased. You’re not alone. More than half of those who get tattoos later say they regret it. Spa in the City in Dallas, Texas offers professional, efficient laser tattoo removal with the revolutionary Q-Switch laser.

How Does Laser Tattoo Removal Work?

To understand why laser tattoo removal is so effective, it’s important to know what a tattoo does to the skin, how the skin reacts, and how lasers can provide the treatment you need to undo this reaction.

How Are Tattoos Created?

Tattoos may have become especially trendy in the last decade, but they’ve been around for thousands of years. Human beings have decorated their bodies with art and permanent drawings for centuries, and researchers have even discovered evidence of tattoos on Egyptian mummies.

Today, modern tattoo artists use an electrically powered machine that punctures the skin with a sterilized needle at more than 50 times a minute. These machines are controlled using a pedal similar to the ones found on sewing machines.

When the skin is penetrated, ink is inserted into the dermis. The dermis is the layer of skin beneath the epidermis, which is the outer layer of skin. The tattoo ink must be inserted into the dermis because the skin cells there are more stable than the ones found in the epidermis. Because the tattoo is drawn so deeply into the skin, it’s able to last for a lifetime.

Why Is Tattoo Removal Needed?

Did you know that while 10 percent of Americans have tattoos, more than half of them regret getting them?

There are many reasons someone may regret a tattoo and want to have it removed. Sometimes an image or symbol that resonated strongly at one point no longer has the impact it once did. In certain cases, tattoos make it more difficult to gain employment. For example, in certain jobs, visible tattoos are not allowed, and it is inconvenient and time-consuming to cover them.

Tattoos also transform as your skin changes. When your skin begins to lose its elasticity, tattoos can distort and fade. This means that instead of being a work of art, they can become a source of embarrassment. Thankfully, laser tattoo removal is available that can both eliminate tattoos and preserve your delicate skin.

How Are Tattoos Removed?

There are several ways to remove tattoos, and previous methods, such as salabrasion and dermabrasion, were problematic. These methods “sanded” the tattoo off the skin, resulting in pain, swelling, scarring, and bleeding. Other methods, including cutting and skin grafting, were no better, causing pain, extensive scarring, and long recovery periods.

However, a type of laser called a quality-switched (Q-Switched) laser has provided a better, more effective alternative for tattoo removal.

What Is a Q-Switch Laser?

This is a laser that pulses a beam of light at an estimated one billionth of a second. This non-invasive laser is able to create a high-intensity, concentrated pulse of light that shatters ink pigmentations.

What makes the Q-Switch laser truly exceptional is that they can eliminate the tattoo without damaging surrounding tissue. This makes them an excellent choice for safely and effectively removing tattoos without troublesome side effects.

Introducing the Q-Switched Tattoo Removal Treatment

This treatment has become the gold standard in tattoo removal.

How the Process Works

The principle behind effective tattoo removal is to break down the tattoo pigment into pieces small enough that they can be naturally removed by the body.

The Q-switched Laser delivers high-energy light pulses to the skin that are then absorbed by the tattoo pigment. As a result, it breaks apart. Once the tattoo pigment has been broken into tiny pieces, they are able to be naturally eliminated from the body.

After the treatment, the area is cleaned and bandaged.

What Kinds of Tattoos Can Be Removed?

Laser systems can provide efficient tattoo removal with minimal scarring. Tattoos that are candidates for removal include:

• Amateur tattoos
• Professionally drawn tattoos
• Color tattoos
• Traumatic tattoos
• Cosmetic tattoos (eye liner, lip liner)

How Many Treatments Are Needed for Tattoo Removal?

There are several factors that influence how many sessions are needed for tattoo removal. These include:

• Where the tattoo is located
• The age of the patient
• The type of skin
• The color/ extent of the tattoo

Because there are so many factors involved, it’s difficult to state an exact number of sessions needed for a tattoo removal. However, many laser tattoo removal can be completed in eight to 12 sessions. These sessions should be spaced a month and a half to two weeks apart. Each individual case—just like each tattoo—is unique, and therefore it’s important for us to carefully evaluate your skin and your tattoo before we can give any estimate on the amount of time for a removal.

Is It Painful to Have a Tattoo Removed?

In many ways, a tattoo removal can feel similar to having the tattoo done in the first place. Sometimes, laser tattoo removal treatment is described as having a rubber band snapped on the skin. We do offer topical anesthetic to help ease the discomfort, especially for sensitive areas, although many patients do not need them.

Need to Have a Tattoo Removed?

Modern lasers such as the Q-Switch have made tattoo removal safer and more effective than ever. If you’re one of the millions of Americans who want to get rid of your tattoo, contact Spa in the City in Dallas, Texas, where we’ll be happy to help you.