Tattoo Removal- the best treatment Part 3

Surgery: In the old days, tattoos were simply excised together with the skin. This is sometimes done for difficult tattoos which are deep and located in unusual places. Areas of the body with lax skin are best suited for excision as the incision can be closed without any tension. However, surgery for removal of tattoos is very rare and the last modality of choice.

Chemical tissue destruction: Various caustic chemicals (tannic acid and silver nitrate) have been used to treat numerous skin conditions including tattoo removal. The chemicals are applied on skin and often combined with superficial dermabrasion. Sometimes the chemicals are injected superficially underneath the skin. The chemical method of treating any skin lesion is now relegated to the history books. The procedure always results in scarring, deformity, and pain and skin discoloration. Many individuals have had to undergo skin grafting other plastic surgery procedures to correct the defects caused by the chemicals. This was a technique used when there was nothing available in the past. Unfortunately, some of these chemicals are available and still used for home use. If you come across any cosmetic clinic or tattoo parlor which still uses chemicals to treat tattoos- just run away.

Liquid nitrogen: In dermatology, liquid nitrogen (-196 °C) is commonly used to treat numerous skin lesions and once was attempted to remove tattoos. There have been a few reports of successful removal of tattoos, but in general, the technique is not effective and can destroy surrounding normal tissue. It can only be used for the very superficial and very small tattoos. Liquid nitrogen is best left to treat anal warts and not tattoos.

Thermal tissue destruction: Tattoo removal has even been attempted with heat. Thermal injury via fire, hot coal and metals and cigarettes has been applied on the skin for centuries to try to remove unwanted tattoos. As one can imagine, the results were obvious and anyone who has ever been burnt with a cigarette, will known exactly how great it feels. Electrocautery and electrodessication were widely used in the past and caused significant scarring. Most thermal products to remove tattoos are not used today. However, technology in the use of thermal products has led to the best methods of tattoo removal- the laser.