How to treat sunspots
These troublesome spots can appear on your face, shoulders, forearms and hands – the areas most exposed to the sun.
HOW effective is laser resurfacing for removing sunspots? Are there creams or other products that work to treat sun-damaged skin?
Laser resurfacing and other forms of laser and light therapy can effectively reduce or eliminate sunspots. Certain creams can also be useful.
Keep in mind though, that if you don’t protect your skin from the sun, the spots will almost always return, or new ones will form.
The medical term for a sunspot is lentigo (or lentigines for multiple sunspots). You may also hear them called age spots or liver spots.
These spots on the skin are flat and round, or oval in shape. They are uniform in colour, ranging from light brown to black. Because they are a result of sun damage to the skin, the spots are most common on areas of the body that have frequent sun exposure, such as the face, shoulders and hands.
Laser therapy, as well as a treatment called intense pulsed light, can treat pigmented skin lesions, including sunspots.
Before you move forward with any treatment, however, it’s important to be evaluated by a healthcare provider who is experienced in diagnosing and treating skin conditions.
Your healthcare provider can review factors that could affect your treatment, such as your skin type, medical history, family history and any medications you take.
He or she will also perform a thorough physical exam to confirm that the spots you want treated are sunspots. That’s a key step because not all brown spots are lentigines.
For example, brown patches on the face could be another skin disorder called melasma. Using laser treatment on melasma may worsen that condition.
In some cases, the skin cancer melanoma can also look similar to sunspots. Identifying and treating melanoma as quickly as possible is critical to curing it.
If laser therapy is right for you, you may need more than one treat- ment to achieve the best outcome.
It’s usually done in a healthcare provider’s office and doesn’t require hospitalisation.
The length of the procedure and the time it takes to see results vary, depending on the specific type of treatment you receive.
Potential side effects include redness, swelling, itching, changes in skin colour and scarring. Because laser and light treatments are considered cosmetic, they are typically not covered by insurance.
After laser treatment, to protect your skin and keep spots from returning, you need to use a broad-spectrum sunscreen with a sun protection factor, or SPF, of 30 or higher. To prevent sunspots, always use sunscreen or wear protective clothing when outdoors.
Topical creams can be an alternative, or used in addition, to laser or light therapy to fade sunspots.
Effective options include topical retinoids and a bleaching cream called hydroquinone.
These creams are available by prescription from your healthcare provider or in lower potency non-prescription forms in retail pharmacies and drugstores.
There are also many other topical agents available over the counter, such as antioxidants that may improve the appearance of sunspots.
As you consider treatment options for sunspots, review the benefits and risks with your healthcare provider. He or she can help you determine which approach is best for you.
Whatever you decide, to protect your safety, ensure the healthcare provider you work with has training and experience with the therapies you’re considering.