Laser tattoo removal

Thankfully, techniques for removing unwanted tattoos have come a long way since the ineffective, painful and in some cases, downright barbaric techniques. Safe, effective laser tattoo removal has replaced abrasive, chemical treatments, infrared and skin grafting or removal. Typically, laser tattoo removal can achieve clearance of 75-80% of unwanted tattoo ink.

PicoSure laser tattoo removal

Nowadays, best practice in the laser tattoo removal industry dictates that unwanted tattoos are fragmented, over a period of time, by subjecting them to pulses of laser light at specific frequencies and wavelengths. Indeed, the first aesthetic laser of its kind is known as ‘Picosure’ and takes its name from the one million millionth of a second, or ‘picosecond’ pulses that it delivers to the skin. By contrast, older, inferior Q-switched tattoo removal lasers deliver pulses of laser that are 1,000 times longer and, consequently, much less effective at fragmenting tattoo ink.

How available is laser tattoo removal?

PicoSure laser tattoo removal is a new, revolutionary technique and, as such, is only available in a handful of clinics throughout the country, most of which are run by ProSkin. ProSkin currently offers treatment with the PicoSure tattoo removal laser at its clinics in Liverpool Street, Bond Street, Shepherds Bush, Harley Street, Esher and Bluewater as well as in Newcastle City Centre.

How fast is laser tattoo removal?

Picosure laser tattoo removal is typically up to four times faster than traditional, Q-switched laser tattoo removal but, even so, it’s unwise to think that your unwanted tattoo will vanish completely after just a single treatment session. This may, in fact, be the case with small, amateur, black ink tattoos but, for anything more complex, multiple sessions will probably be necessary. Tattoos respond differently to laser light, depending on their age, colour, chemical composition, depth and density, so estimating how many treatments are needed always requires an element of educated guesswork. Certainly, pale or fluorescent colours, including blue, green, turquoise, white and yellow are notoriously stubborn and could take anything up to eight treatment sessions to remove completely.