Preparing for a laser tattoo removal session

Laser tattoo removal relies on extremely short pulses that break the ink into finer particles; the body then clears them slowly, from one session to the next. The tattoo therefore fades in stages, over months. It is best to know from the outset what can be said before starting, and what cannot.

What to expect

The number of sessions cannot be given before the examination at the consultation. It depends on the colour and density of the ink, its depth, the age of the tattoo, where it sits and your phototype: a heavily inked professional tattoo does not behave like an old amateur one. Sessions are at least six to eight weeks apart — the time the body needs to clear the fragmented ink.

The aim is to lighten the tattoo as far as the skin allows; its complete disappearance can never be promised. Black and dark blue respond best; red responds depending on the wavelength used; green, light blue and yellow are more resistant. A residual shadow, or a slight difference in skin tone or texture, may remain at the end of treatment.

On darker skin, there is an additional risk: the melanin in the epidermis captures part of the light meant for the ink. This can lead to depigmentation — an area lighter than the surrounding skin, which takes months to regain its colour and sometimes does not regain it fully — and, more rarely, a dark mark. Hence cautious settings — 1064 nm is then generally preferred — and more widely spaced sessions.

Preparing, four weeks before

No sun, sunbeds or self-tanner on the area for the four weeks before: as with other lasers, tanned skin is not treated, and the risk of depigmentation rises. If the tattoo is on an uncovered area, cover it rather than relying on sunscreen alone.

The evening before or on the morning itself, shave the area if it is hairy, and come with clean skin, without cream or perfume, wearing loose clothing that will not rub on the dressing on the way home.

What to tell us

A photosensitising treatment or isotretinoin, pregnancy or breastfeeding, a tendency to keloid scarring, cold sores if the tattoo is near the lips, anticoagulant therapy, or a condition that slows healing, such as poorly controlled diabetes.

Also mention a tattoo that has already itched, swollen or reacted: some inks, red above all, can cause an allergy that the laser may reawaken. Finally, say whether it is permanent make-up or a tattoo covered by another: these inks behave differently.

How the session goes

A test on a small area comes before the first session: its reaction, observed over a few weeks, shows how the ink and your skin respond. It is essential for light shades and permanent make-up, which can darken under the laser. On the day of the session, you wear protective goggles; depending on the area, a numbing cream or local anaesthetic may be used, and the area is cooled.

The sensation is sharper than with laser hair removal — often compared to splashes of hot oil. Right after the pulse, the skin turns white: this frosting is expected, it is not a burn, and it fades on its own within about half an hour. Then come redness, swelling and sometimes a few pinpoints of bleeding.

Afterwards, and what to do

A dressing is applied at the end of the session. In the following days, clean gently with water and a mild soap, pat dry, apply the prescribed cream in a thin layer, and protect the area with a clean dressing for as long as it weeps.

Blisters or crusts may appear within 24 to 48 hours: do not pop the blisters or scratch, and let the crusts fall off on their own — that is how a scar is avoided. No bath, swimming pool, sea, hammam or sauna until fully healed, usually one to two weeks.

The sun is ruled out on the area for the whole course of treatment: cover it, then add SPF 50 once the skin has closed. An area that tans between sessions has its next session postponed.

When to call us back

Call the practice in case of spreading redness, warmth, pain that increases instead of easing, pus or fever: these are signs of infection. Call too for a very large or very tense blister, a wound that has not closed after two weeks, or itching and swelling that spread beyond the area.

An area that becomes noticeably lighter or darker in the following weeks should also be shown to us: it guides the settings and spacing of the next sessions.

None of the above replaces the prior consultation: it alone says whether this procedure is right for you, and on what terms.