Combat Melasma With Microneedling
The patchy brown pigments of melasma are among the most prevalent, challenging, and emotionally charged skin conditions that people deal with. While melasma is fueled by UV light, it is also influenced by hormones, as with acne and the marks it leaves behind.
Unfortunately, the devices that are commonly used to treat the discoloration associated with those issues tend to make melasma worse by virtue of their heat. This can spark more pigment formation in the weeks following treatment.
Fearing this rebound effect, we lean on heat-free solutions to combat melasma, like gentle chemical peels and, energy-free microneedling treatments—typically, in conjunction with targeted lightening skin care products and strict sun avoidance.
While not everyone sees microneedling as a home run for melasma, emerging research supports its success in hundreds of cases. Attributing its efficacy, in large part, to the channels it creates in the skin.
These carefully oriented punctures serve as tiny portals, allowing select lightening agents to seep into the skin’s deeper layers, which are impossible to reach with ordinary topical application. But the benefits of microneedling don’t end there.
Melasma can stain the epidermis, or topmost layer of skin, as well as the deeper dermis—and oftentimes affects both. Beyond the placement of pigment, what make melasma so difficult to treat down are the omnipresent stimuli responsible for its creation. Since the condition is fueled primarily by female hormones, birth control and sunlight.
The sun is very unrelenting. Which is why attempting to treat melasma must include sunscreen during UV-intense summer months.
Whether inside, outside, or in the car, broad-spectrum sunscreen with a high SPF is mandatory—as are hats with large brims wide enough to shield melasma hot spots, like the forehead, upper lip, cheeks, and nose.
Unlike pigment-targeting lasers, mechanical microneedling does not use heat, but treats through a series of clean, controlled punctures. This is turn forces the surrounding skin via its healing mechanisms to make brand-new, fresh skin that hasn’t yet experienced the effects of hormones and sun.
As a nice bonus, microneedling also ramps up collagen growth and gives your skin a pretty glow.
If you are dealing with melasma, microneedling could be the treatment you are looking for to help you lighten those patches of pigmentation. Call Advanced Laser Clinic at 417-883-5400 today to get more information. Consultations are always free.