Brown Spots, Freckles, and Age Spot Removal Treatment
We will help you reduce your skin pigmentation to feel more confident and reduce the need to cover up.
Rediscover your true look at DermMedica…
with one of our many solutions to treat skin pigmentation…
About Brown Spots, Age Spots, and Other Pigmentation Issues
Sinatra sang it best… “Tall and tan and young and lovely, the girl from ipanema goes walking…” Tanned, even-coloured skin is highly desirable and is what most of us had when we were younger. As we age and acquire more sun exposure, we start to experience freckling and unwanted brown spots rather than a nice even colour. Thankfully we have treatments that can even out that pigmentation and get us closer to what we once had.
WHY CHOOSE US?
We always invest in the world’s best technology and products to ensure optimal results. We have 7 different lasers / treatment options at our disposal to make sure we can help you. Book your consultation today! |
AREAS TREATED
FACE |
EQUIPMENT / TECHNIQUES
Laser for Pigmentation |
Fractional CO2 Skin Resurfacing |
Skin Care Products |
Suncscreen |
Chemical Peels |
Levulan PDT |
Treatment Results
Just like skin, results may vary. These pictures (of our awesome, real-life clients!) help you see what is possible and sets a realistic expectation.
We’d love to get to know you, learn more about your goals, and see what treatment options would suit you best.
Book a consultation with us today!
*Treatment results may vary from person to person
Pigmentation Treatment Kelowna
**Please note, we do NOT treat Melasma which is a chronic skin condition that is very difficult to improve.
Pigmentation is a dark skin discoloration that appears on sun-exposed areas of the face. Pigmentation appears as a consistent brown color over the cheeks, forehead, nose, or upper lip, often appearing symmetrically on the both sides of the face.
Before Pigmentation Treatment with Laser Therapy
After Pigmentation Treatment with Laser Therapy
What Are the Symptoms?
Brown skin discoloration anywhere on the face. This condition is more common in women especially after having had one or more children. Sun exposure significantly affects this condition so we advise all our patients to avoid the sun as much as possible in addition to using daily UV sun protection.
What Are the Causes?
Pigmentation is much more common in women, frequently resulting from the presence of female hormones due to: pregnancy, birth control pills, and hormone replacement therapy. Sun exposure is also a significant contributing factor causing pigmentation to worsen quite a bit during the summer months.
What Are the Treatment Options?
Other treatments that can also be considered in some patients:
Brown Spots, Freckles, and Age Spot Removal in Kelowna
What are freckles, brown spots or age spots?
Brown spots, also known as “liver spots” are flat, brown-black spots that usually appear on the skin in sun-exposed areas of the body. Despite their nickname, they have nothing to do with the liver or liver function.
Brown spots (or more accurately – age spots) typically develop in people with a light complexion, but they can also be seen in those with darker skin. Age spots can be flat, oval or irregularly shaped and have increased pigmentation and are normally light brown, black or gray in colour
Age spots may range from freckle-size to more than a half inch (1 cm) in diametre. Age spots are sometimes grouped together, making them more prominent.
Here is a short video demonstrating laser removal of freckles or brown spots that occur from sun exposure. They immediately turn white after treatment and then the freckle falls off the skin in about 5 days after the treatment. Usually one treatment is required but each person is unique.
What are the causes of age spots?
The pigment in the upper layer of skin (epidermis) that gives your skin its normal colour is called melanin. UV light accelerates the production of melanin, creating a tan which helps protect deeper layers of skin from UV rays.
Age or brown spots are normally caused by years of exposure to ultraviolet (UV) light from the sun. The use of commercial tanning lamps and tanning beds can also contribute to the development of brown spots. These will be most noticeable in areas that were heavily exposed like the back of your hands, top of your feet, your face as well as your shoulders and back.
On areas of the skin that have years of frequent and prolonged sun exposure, age spots appear when melanin becomes “clumped” or is produced in particularly high concentrations in one area. In addition to sun exposure, simply becoming older can cause the extra production of melanin.
Your genetic makeup may also play a role in how susceptible you are to the development of brown spots.
It is interesting to note that over time pigmented spots usually decrease in number with advancing age.
When should I see my doctor about my age spots?
You may not appreciate the way in which they look, but brown spots are usually harmless and don’t require medical care. However, your doctor should evaluate spots that are dark or have changed in appearance, because these changes can be signs of melanoma, a serious form of skin cancer.
It is always best to have any new skin changes evaluated by a trained physician, especially if these brown spots or lesions:
- are newly changed or darkly coloured
- are changing in size
- have an irregular border
- have an unusual combination of colours
- are accompanied by itching, redness, tenderness or bleeding
What Are the Treatments for Brown Spots?
There are numerous treatments available for brown spots, take a look at the links below for more information. Dr. Crippen can determine what treatment is right for you.
Make a consultation with a member of our staff today if you would like to discuss your age spots and how we can treat them.
Frequently Asked Questions
Yes. Several of the treatments listed in the treatments above are laser treatments, and they will be considered and used if the brown spot we’re treating requires it. Lasers are a flexible treatment option that can manage spots of many different sizes and colors.
It may take anywhere from one treatment to several to remove most brown spots. The number of treatments may depend on the size, age and color of the spot, as well as the strength of the treatment you’ve decided to pursue.
Our treatments are mostly non-invasive, and we don’t use them at an intensity that would require you to bandage any area. After any of our treatments, you’ll be able to return to your regular work. All that you’re required to do is keep out of direct sunlight and manage minor tenderness and irritability of your skin for anywhere from 3-10 days.
Sunspots and sk lesions are two completely different entities. To remove “sun spots” one is usually referring to lentigos which are flat brown pigmentations in the skin on sun exposed body parts. For these kind of benign lesions, IPL treatments as well as other laser treatments can be beneficial. For seborrheic keratosis, a combination of surgical excision and laser therapy is usually recommended.
Laser treatments can be very effective for flat brown lengitos on the face. IPL or another kind of laser can be used with minimal downtime and good long lasting results. They can however return at any time and more quickly with sun exposure.
Age spots come in all sorts of varieties and it really depends on the patient’s particular situation. We usually use a combination of laser and surgical excision methods.
Decreasing your exposure to the sun and UV light rays will help slow down their progression. Using a good sunscreen can also be quite useful to lessen the appearance of brown spots on the face.
The cost varies depending on the situation and the types of lesions to be removed or improved. We usually recommend a formal consultation to give patients an accurate quote as this is the best way to assess each individual situation.
These are widely different treatment for various skin types and issues so there is a long list of possible treatment. For darker skin, the treatments can range from lasers for colour, texture and more. The best overall treatment for these skin problems is the CO2 laser treatment, our DermaPeel. It address all of these at the same time however there is some downtime to the treatment as we are removing skin so there is some redness and swelling for about one week.
Removing freckles or pigmentation on darker skin types can be tricky however certain treatments can be effective. Non ablative fraxel or QS lasers can work for pigmentation depending on the skin type and ethnicity of the patient.
Mostly yes, but certainly not all of them. It also depends on what is referred to as brown spots. Some age spots are brown in colour and have little to do with sun exposure, however most pigmentation in the skin results from years of accumulated UV exposure.
The most common treatment is IPL for facial lentigos, however Q-switched lasers can also be very effective in the right patient.
It is important to note that Melasma is a chronic (long term) condition of the skin that cannot be cured. In this respect, there will always be a need to treat melasma on an ongoing basis, whether it is through the use of medications or laser treatments. We can never guarantee that Melasma will be completely eradicated, but by following our very specific treatment protocols, most patients will experience a very dramatic reduction in the appearance of pigmentation over time. In order to find out what you need, a consultation with Dr. Crippen is definitely recommended.
Melasma is a condition (mostly in women) where there is an abnormal amount of Melanin (pigment) produced in the skin predominately on the face. This condition is mostly a cosmetic nuisance and is related to hormones, sun exposure, age and other factors. There are some treatments for this condition but you have to be very careful when allowing someone to treat melasma because most lasers will make the condition worse. It is a chronic condition that cannot be cured but can certainly improved under the right treatment conditions.
Yes, that is entirely possible. Many women have experienced Melasma only during their pregnancies, and then witnessed it vanishing as soon as the baby was born. That is unfortunately not the case for everyone. Many women (and men) will experience Melasma as a lifelong condition once it has developed, and it may develop even in women who have never become pregnant.
Melasma is a difficult treatment to cure and/or lighten. Laser therapy usually leaves the skin slightly red for a day but that is all.
Unfortunately we do not have a cure, but we have treatments that can lighten the pigmentation.
Melasma may never fade once it has begun. We have strategies to reduce the appearance of the lesion with skin care and laser treatments.
Yes, it is entirely possible however we do not know why it occurs in the first place.
A very specific laser is required to treat deep pigmentation in melasma. We do not recommend IPL treatments as it may worsen the condition very easily.
No, melasma is more than just pigmentation.
No, melasma is not caused by an infection, we believe a combination of genetic and environmental factors play a role in it’s development.
Yes, it usually returns after significant sun exposure in almost all patients.
There is not a long lasting treatment for melasma, ongoing care with skin care products and interval laser treatments is the best current option.