Liver Spots Removal
Liver spots are dark brown flat spots on the surface of the skin. They appear mostly on the back of hands, forearms, neck, face and chest. They are associated mainly with prolonged exposure to the sun. This activates the pigment producing cells in the skin to produce more pigment that would protect the skin from the sun’s ultraviolet rays. The occurrence of these liver spots may lead to a risk of acquiring cancer though they are not cancerous themselves.
In removing liver spots from the skin, a physician may administer a peel using different chemicals to remove liver spots. Chemical peels smoothen and hold the skin firm while lightening the liver spots gradually. The superficial peels can be administered from home and have no recovery time but deeper peels are more effective and require longer recovery time. The two types, superficial and deeper, vary when it comes to the risks involved. The former is quite safe but may need a series of peels before any improvement is noticed and also the cost goes up with the number of peels one gets. However, risks and benefits vary depending on the type of peel you need.
Liver spots are also burned off using the laser resurfacing treatment. This is an in-office treatment that removes spots and discoloration often in just one treatment. With the skin well protected from the sun by use of sun proof materials like umbrellas and caps, the effects can last up to five years. Lasers remove the outer surface of the skin. Because of this, it causes pain and peeling in the skin. This kind of therapy is expensive but its recovery is at least a week.
Intense pulse light therapy is a newer form of liver spots removal which uses intensely focused light to deliver energy to the deep layers of the skin. This spares the upper layer from damage hence no recovery time required. With good sun protection, improvement can last for more than a year. Intense pulse light is considered harmless when compared to the laser treatment due to the fact that there is no injury caused to the upper layer. Some pain may be experienced during the procedure but there is no recovery time unlike in laser treatment. All the same, numerous treatments are required for effective results to be realized. When removing liver spots using the intense pulse light technique, the cost is high but variable. Usually it is more than the lasers’ because of the series of peels needed.
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