Before and After – 1 single treatment and 2 stacked treatments
When patients want to have a tattoo removed, their first concern is often how long the process will take. There’s no way to remove a tattoo in just one office visit other than via excision, which is reserved for the smallest of tattoos and doesn’t work in many areas, but luckily, there is a way to speed up the process from about a year to just a few months. In this blog post, Joel Schlessinger MD discusses stacked tattoo removal and how this procedure works.
Stacked tattoo removal allows for several sessions of tattoo removal in just one sitting, Joel Schlessinger MD shares.
Since the 1960s, cosmetic surgeons have used lasers to remove unwanted tattoos. With early laser technologies, the results were not always ideal. The tattoos were difficult to remove and often left behind some scarring. Today’s lasers do a much better job of removing the pigment in tattoos. Even if the tattoo cannot be completely removed, many times it can be diminished or significantly lightened.
Stacked tattoo removal is a recent advancement that has made the removal process much quicker and easier for most patients. The stacked treatment offers the ability to perform four sessions in just one sitting. During this treatment, the doctor uses the same basic laser settings and each session is separated by approximately 20 minutes. This can shorten treatment time from a year or more to several months in many cases.
However, it’s important to remember that not all tattoos respond to the same treatment. Many cosmetic surgeons prefer to perform one single session first to make sure the pigments in the tattoo are responsive to treatment and there are no adverse reactions. Once your doctor knows how your tattoo will respond, he or she will be able to determine the best treatment plan to meet your needs.
Joel Schlessinger MD discusses how the tattoo removal process works.
Tattoo ink is made up of tiny particles that are placed into the skin with a needle. The tattoo removal laser works by delivering an intense pulse of light into the skin. When the color of the light matches the color of the ink, the ink heats up and vaporizes the particles. As these particles become smaller, they absorb into your body.
Some tattoos are easier to remove than others. Black, brown and blue inks are usually easier to remove while lighter colors like green, yellow, white, orange or purple can be more difficult. Generally, the ideal tattoo for removal should be no bigger than five inches in length and width. It’s possible to remove tattoos that are larger than this, but the area will need to be separated in to smaller sections and treated over a longer period of time.
Choose a board-certified cosmetic surgeon like Joel Schlessinger MD to remove your tattoo.
When you’ve decided you want to remove a tattoo, it’s important to seek treatment from a board-certified professional to avoid skin damage or other complications. Your cosmetic surgeon should be able to tell you what kind of results you can expect prior to any treatment. Because each tattoo responds differently, the professional you choose should also be comfortable working with various types of lasers.
Joel Schlessinger MD has been treating unwanted tattoos at his practice in Omaha, Neb. since 1997. He has three different lasers available to use, allowing him to treat a variety of colors and tattoo patterns that are usually difficult to treat. Before your procedure, he can answer any questions you might have, including how approximately many treatments you might need, if your tattoo will respond to treatment and what results you can expect.
Do you have questions about tattoo removal for Joel Schlessinger MD? Share with us in the comments.