Brown Spots on Skin After Laser? (photo)

Post-Infammatory Pigmentation is the body's response to thermal heating, especially in marker skin.  This can be seen after several different types of lasers.  The pigmentation is temporary but because it can last months, most doctors will recommend a hydroquinone (bleaching agent) to speed up the process.  I would also avoid the sun while getting your tattoo treated since the hydroquinones can make you very photosensitive.

All current tattoo removal lasers including Revlite work by heating the tattoo ink and breaking it apart.  The heating causes a thermal injury to the surrounding tissues which is like a burn within the skin.  This stimulates the pigment porducing cells(melanocytes) to make extra pigment resulting in post inflammatory hyperpigmentation or PIH.  This is temporary and will go away, but it can take months.  The hydroquinone slows the melanocytes' pigment production, so it can help. Another option you should consider is looking for a clinic with the Picosure laser, which works at 100 x faster pulses and acoustically breaks apart the pigment resulting in much less heat damage to the surrounding tissue and gets rid of your tattoo much faster than any other laser in the world.