There may be a number of reasons to want your tattoo removed from your body, according to Medic8.com. You may have been tattooed in your younger days and now regret it. Your tattoo may not have been performed by a professional and it may not look good. It may simply be located on a visible spot on your body and it is hurting your employment prospects. At one time, painful surgery or laser treatments were the only removal options. Now, cream injections and topical fading creams are promising the same results without the pain and expense.
Topical Fading Creams
Topical creams can be purchased for home use or administered by a physician and are meant to fade a tattoo over time. According to the Tattoo Removal Institute, topical creams gradually break down the pigmentation of a tattoo. The Institute also states that over the course of time and after many successive treatments, the tattoo should become faded. Using these creams simply speed up your body's normal process of eliminating foreign objects, which is the tattoo ink in this situation. Even though the creams will fade a tattoo, none have been found to remove a tattoo completely, according to TattooHealth.org
Cream Injections
Cream injections were not widely available as of June 2010, but were available at some skin clinics. With this treatment, tattoo removal cream is injected underneath the tattoo, causing it to bind with the colors in the tattoo and forcing the ink to come to the skin's surface. As the skin heals, it will start to reject the ink and cream combination and begin to scab over. After a few weeks, the scab should fall off.
Benefits and Disadvantages
Out of all of the tattoo removal options, topical fading creams are the least painful and least costly. It is also the only method that does not put the skin at risk for scarring. Unfortunately, this method can take several weeks, or even months to produce results so you must have patience to keep up with the treatments. Topical creams also carry the risk of discoloration of the skin and skin irritation. Another downfall is that the creams are less effective on colors other than black or dark blue.
Those who want faster results without the pain and expense of laser removal surgery are turning to the tattoo removal cream injections as they are effective for removing tattoos of any color. However, this method needs to be administered by a highly skilled professional and requires numerous sessions that are divided by lengthy amounts of time. If this method is used for removing a large tattoo or one that is deeper in the skin, it can become quite costly and extremely time-consuming.
Other Removal Methods
Surgical tattoo removals involve a doctor using a scalpel to cut the tattoo from the skin. The American Society for Dermatologic Surgery states that although it requires a little recovery time and can be painful, it is the most effective method of tattoo removal.
Laser treatments consist of a surgeon targeting the tattoo pigment with a laser beam. According to the ASDS, the laser offers a very effective method of removing a tattoo with low-risk and almost no side effects. The downside is that numerous treatments may be required.
Dermabrasion is a method in which your doctor raises and absorbs the ink from a tattoo by sanding down the layers of your skin. This method can lead to scarring and is quite painful states the ASDS.
A chemical peel will cause blistering of the skin, which is then peeled off. There are chemical peels available for home use but it is recommended that treatments be administered by medical professionals. These peels can lead to permanent discoloration of the skin, infection and scarring.
Warning
The American Society for Dermatologic Surgery warns that if you have any pigmentation problems, undiagnosed lesions, autoimmune system disorders, warts, unstable diabetes, active rosacea or weeping acne, you should not undergo any tattoo removal treatments as they can lead to complications with these problems. Also, if you are pregnant or think that you may be pregnant, you should avoid these treatments.
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