melasma treatment / best treatment for melasma / hyperpigmentation

melasma treatment

Melasma - hyperpigmentation

Melasma is a skin condition that causes patches of dark skin on areas of the face exposed to the sun.

Melasma is a common skin disorder.

It most often appears in young women with brownish skin tone, but it can affect anyone.

• Melasma is often associated with the female hormones estrogen and progesterone.
• It is common in: Pregnant women, Women taking birth control pills (oral contraceptives)
• Women who are taking hormone replacement therapy (HRT) during menopause.

Being in the sun makes melasma more likely to develop.

The problem is more common in tropical climates.

Symptoms 

• The only symptom of melasma is a change in skin color.
• However, this color change can cause distress about your appearance.
• The skin color changes are most often an even brown color.
• They often appear on the cheeks, forehead, nose, or upper lip.
• Dark patches are often symmetrical.

Exams and Tests 

• Your health care provider will look at your skin to diagnose the problem.
• A closer exam using a device called a Wood's lamp (which uses ultraviolet light) may help guide your treatment.

Treatments may include:

Creams that contain certain substances to improve the appearance of melasma

Chemical peels or topical steroid creams Laser treatments to remove the dark pigment

if melasma is severe Stopping hormone medicines that may be causing

the problem Medicines taken by mouth


Outlook (Prognosis) Melasma often fades over several months after

you stop taking hormone medicines or your pregnancy ends.

The problem may come back in future pregnancies or if you use these medicines again.

It may also come back from sun exposure.

When to Contact a Medical Professional Call your provider if you have darkening of your face that does not go away.

• Prevention The best way to lower your risk for melasma
• Sun exposure is to protect your skin from the sun and ultraviolet (UV) light.
• Things you can do to lower your exposure to sunlight include:
• Wear clothing such as hats, long-sleeved shirts, long skirts, or pants.

Try to avoid being

•  the sun during midday, when ultraviolet light is most intense.

Use

• high-quality sunscreens, preferably with a sun protection factor (SPF) rating of at least a broad-spectrum sunscreen that blocks both UVA and UVB light.
• Apply sunscreen before going out into the sun, and reapply often -- at least every 2 hour while in the sun.

Eat a healthy and balanced diet.

• Incorporate foods with vitamin C in your diet like citrus fruits, kiwis, or spinach.
• Vitamin C inhibits the production of melanin in your body and helps reduce pigmentation.
• You can also use vitamin C supplements.

various medical treatments available

• Modern medical treatments like topical creams, retinoids,
• lasers, chemical peels are used to treat melasma.

So let’s discuss these treatments in detail.


1st treatment is a topical cream.

• 3% Tranexamic Acid Face Serum for Melasma, Pigmentation, Erythema & Acne Scars
• Face Serum with HPA to Remove Melasma & Post Inflammatory Hyperpigmentation or Erythema
• 2% Retinoid Anti Ageing Night Cream
• Exfoliate Coffee Scrub

The second treatment is a topical cream.

• Skin lightening creams that contain hydroquinone can also be used to treat melasma.
• Retinoids are used to improve the appearance of the skin.

The third treatment is Medicated skin lightening cream.

• Skin lightening creams that contain agents like hydroquinone, kojic acid, Arbutin and Azelaic acid that can lighten your skin reduce the freckles.
• Hydroquinone helps to reduce the excess production of melanin.
• The combination of bleaching and fading creams are the most effective
• measure for sun protection and freckles.

The fourth treatment is Retinoids.

• Retinoids absorb the ultraviolet radiation and improve sun-damaged skin.
• It can lighten freckles and prevent their recurrence.
• It helps to destroy accumulated melanin pigment in the body and accelerate skin cell turnover.
• Usually, bleaching creams are made of retinoids.
• Creams that contain tretinoin acid, tazarotene, and adapalene can be used to lighten your freckles.
• Your freckles can be reduced if you use these creams consistently.

The fifth treatment is chemical peels.

• Chemical peels help to remove the outermost layer of skin by exfoliating. Exfoliation helps to reduce your freckles and make your skin smoother and softer.

• The chemical peels come in three different strengths depending on the depth of skin penetrated: superficial, medium, and deep.
• Chemical peels can be used to treat melasma on the face, arms, and hands
• They may cause temporary redness, irritation, crusting, and swelling.
• It takes a week or two for recovery
• During this period, it's essential to avoid the sun, take antivirals, and apply
• a topical ointment daily to promote healing and soothe skin.

The sixth treatment is cryotherapy.

• In this treatment, liquid nitrogen is used to freeze and destroy abnormal skin cells that can cause pigmented freckles
• Therefore, the melasma lesions become white.
• As a result, this restores the normal pigmentation of the skin.
• The procedure is safe, requires no hospitalization, no anesthesia.
• The recovery period is also short.
• It can cause side effects such as pain, swelling, blistering, bruising, or hypopigmentation.
• To avoid these, you should follow proper skincare before, after & during the Procedure.

The seventh treatment is laser therapy.

• Lasers target damaged areas of skin using pulses of forced and intense light.
• It burns the blood vessels underneath the freckles, reduces their
• appearance, and may also remove them entirely on occasion.

Eighth treatment is Q-switched ND YAG laser 1064 nm or Pico laser.

• It is an effective and safe treatment for freckles.
• Lasers don't cause any long-term damaging effects, but they may cause
• temporary itching, swelling, redness, crusting, peeling, infection,etc.

It takes some time to get the result of all these treatments.

You may need to take multiple sessions of the treatment.

Along with these treatments, you need to take good care of your skin also.

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