Tattoos have a long history of admiration and appreciation, especially from teenagers. Although an urge to have a tattoo is not related to a specific age group, teenagers are the frequent admirers of these body carvings. They use dragons, hearts, stars, flowers and plenty of other forms to express themselves. However, the human taste is subjected to change over time and so happens with people who have such body carvings. Initially, they like it and use it to define themselves. But this likeness is often temporary. As the person matures, his or her preferences change and there is a greater likelihood of disliking the tattoo later in age. And it is the point when people seek for laser tattoo removal.
How lasers work for tattoo removal
The laser beam targets tattoo and breaks down the ink into several small particles. These particles are then absorbed by the body and tattoo appears faded just like as it fades away naturally. Different colors of ink absorb different wavelengths of light so, the success of the treatment majorly depends upon the ability of a laser device to emit light of different wavelengths that the ink absorbs. Dark-colored inks like black and blue are easier to remove with the laser than yellow, green and fluorescent inks.
Some important considerations
A tattoo is not impossible to get rid of but it can be a challenge, in fact. Here are some important considerations that you must take into account before going for a laser procedure.
- Repeated visits are necessary to successfully break down the ink of the tattoo completely.
- Usually, a topical anesthetic is applied prior to the procedure. It minimizes any discomfort which may be caused due to the heat that laser transfers to skin cells.
- Icing the treated area repeatedly, during and after the treatment, also help in decreasing the temperature and so, reduces discomfort.
- Laser tattoo removal is best for areas of the body where the skin is not thin. Having laser treatment on areas that have sensitive or thin skin means you are at a greater possibility of developing side effects.
Success of the laser procedure
Success of a laser tattoo removal procedure depends upon following factors.
- The laser beam penetrates sufficiently deep into the layers of skin to reach the pigment.
- The wavelength of light must be readily absorbed by the pigment and not by the surrounding skin. If the surrounding skin absorbs this light, it would burn skin while leaving the tattoo intact. To achieve this, the beam of an appropriate wavelength should be used for a particular pigment.
- Time for which the beam is projected to the skin should be very small so that, to initiate fragmentation of ink. Prolonged exposure of skin to laser beam would result in the burning of skin.
- Sufficient energy must be transferred to the pigment because a failure to achieve this would leave the tattoo intact.
Laser tattoo removal is an excellent procedure for people who are just tired of their tattoos and want to get rid of them. A careful laser treatment removes tattoo successfully without leaving scars.