Use of the Q-switched alexandrite laser (755 nm, 100 nsec) for eyebrow tattoo removal

✍ Scribed by Moreno-Arias, Gerardo A.; Camps-Fresneda, Alejandro

• Publisher: John Wiley and Sons
• Year: 1999
• Tongue: English
• Weight: 138 KB
• Volume: 25
• Category: Article
• ISSN: 0196-8092
• DOI: 10.1002/(sici)1096-9101(1999)25:2<123::aid-lsm4>3.0.co;2-9

✦ Synopsis

Background and objective:

Permanent tattooing for cosmetic reasons has increased in recent years; as a consequence, there has been an increase of requests for pigment removal due to complications or undesired results. the q-switched alexandrite laser has been found useful in removing black exogenous pigment, which is the most popular color in eyebrow enhancement. we report the case of a patient with black-pigment eyebrow cosmetic tattoo after treatment with the q-switched alexandrite laser.

Study design/materials and methods:

Treatment conditions included 755-nm wavelength, 100 +/- 10-nsec pulse width, and 3-mm spot size. fluence threshold was determined, and a spot test was made at the first visit. single impact technique with 10% overlapping was applied to the whole tattoo. five treatments were performed with a mean fluence of 7 j/cm(2).

Results:

Complete pigment removal was achieved after five sessions. superficial bleeding and vesicle formation was observed.

Conclusions:

Eyebrow tattooing can be treated efficiently with the use of the q-switched alexandrite laser when black pigment has been used for cosmetic reasons.