Question:
I have a tattoo I got several years ago while I was in the Navy. At one time it was an anchor, but it is hard to tell what it is anymore.
What I would like to do, is have the tattoo removed by laser. Could someone please give me some information on this process and possibly how much I could expect to pay;just an idea.
The tattoo appears to be all black now. There might be a touch of red left and it is about 2 1/4″ by 2″. Find a dermatologist in your area that has either:a q-switched ruby laser, a q-switched Nd-YAG laser or a q-switchedalexandrite laser. Plan to spend about $250 for the first treatment,$200 for the next, $150 for the third and about $100 for eachthereafter. If this is a professional tattoo (done in a shop by someonewho knows how to tattoo and used the electric machine designedspecifically for tattooing) it should take at least 5 treatments or so. If you only find a ruby laser, it won’t do much to the red ink so try tofind one of the others if you can.
Answer:
I’m getting a tattoo removed on the 21st. It costs $200 for 2×2 cm.$300 for 3×3 cm. and $400 for 4×4 cm. This is a copy of a letter that has a lot of the info. on Tattoo removal– I work for a company called Spectrum MedicalTechnologies. We manufacture the Q-switched ruby laser, the original laser designed for tattoo removal without leaving a scar. It is respected by the majority of physicians as the treatment of choice for the removal of most tattoos. The following is information from our patient brochure. It should answer most of your questions.
“How does ruby laser therapy work?A short pulse of intense red light emitted by the ruby laser is selectively absorbed by the tattoo ink located in the dermal skin layers. This laser energy causes the tattoo ink to fragment into smaller pigment particles that are removed by your body’s immune system. Dark tattoos may have larger ink masses and may require several treatments to break the ink into small enough particles for the body to dispose of, but the tattoo gradually fades.
What kind of results can I expect?The Q-switched ruby laser provides the best results available on the removal of tattoos. The ruby laser can significantly lighten or remove most tattoo inks. How well your tattoo responds depends on a number of factors. Amateur tattoos usually contain less ink than professional tattoos, and therefore respond more quickly to the treatment. Red and yellow tattoo inks are often more difficult to remove than the darker inks such as black, blue, and green.
Does it hurt?The laser pulse feels like a rubber band snapping against your skin, and each pulse treats an area approximately the size of a pencil eraser. If your tattoo is very large, you may elect to have local anesthesia, but this is often not necessary.
Are there any side effects?Your skins natural pigment, melanin, also absorbs the laser energy, so indarker skinned people the area treated by the laser may become lighter than the surrounding skin for a period of months. Melanin eventually repopulates this area restoring the skin to its original color, but once the tattoo ink is gone, it will not return.
Is it safe?The ruby laser has been used successfully in over 10,000 treatments and hasbeen cleared by the FDA for use in tattoo removal. In general, scarring is not a significant risk. Because the laser beam is absorbed only by the tattoo ink, and not normal skin structures, the surrounding skin is not affected bythe treatment. In fact, the ruby laser has been named the treatment of choice for tattoo removal by members of the American Academy of Dermatology.
What happens after the treatment? Immediately after laser exposure, the treated area turns white and swells slightly This whiteness usually fades in 20 to 60 minutes. Over the next several days, blisters may form and then a scab or a thin crust may follow.(Often the scab is the same color as the tattoo, because the superficial tattoo ink has been eliminated into this crust.) The skin usually returns to normal in about 7 to 10 days.
How many treatments will l require? This will depend on the size of your tattoo as well as its location, depth,and color. Amateur tattoos usually require 2 to 4 treatments while professional tattoos usually require 5 or more treatment sessions. Treatments should be spaced 4 to 8 weeks apart to allow your body’s natural immune system to remove the maximum amount of ink particles in between sessions. You will continue to see fading of the tattoo in between treatment sessions as more ink is removed by your body
Are there any treatment alternatives?There are several treatment options available, but none are as effective as ruby laser treatments. Other methods include surgical excision (cutting the tattoo out), dermabrasion (scrubbing away the skin layers), salabrasion(using table salt to abrade the tattoo area), and chemical peels (using chemicals to burn away layers of skin). These methods are painful expensive,and result in scarring. Other types of lasers have also been used to treat tattoos, but these have not been as effective as the ruby laser and alsooften result in scarring.
How much will it cost?The cost to remove a tattoo depends on the number of treatments required. The number of treatments required depends on the size, location, depth, and color of your tattoo.”
There are other lasers that are used. Some will definitely leave a scar (CO2,for example). Others do not treat as many colors (Nd:YAG does not get green).And others may be very slow in clearing (alexandrite, for example). It is important to ask each laser center which they use have them explain the prosand cons as they relate to your tattoo.
It is really difficult to give you more precise information regarding numberof treatments and cost without actually seeing the tattoo. If you let me knowwhat geographic area you live in, I will send you a list of local centersthat you can contact for a consultation. Most will not charge you for a brief consultation.