Pigmentations on the face are indeed often aggravated by excessive sun exposure.
Firstly, let an experienced doctor conduct a physical examination and diagnose what exactly are your pigmentations so that he or she can advise you on the most suitable treatment options for you.
One of the common pigmentations that is aggravated by excessive sun exposure is solar lentigo.
Treatment Options?
Solar lentigo can respond to topical lightening cream with sun protection measures, and lasers.
Topical lightening cream can work quite well on some patients, so you may not even need laser treatment.
Best Laser?
If laser is required for solar lentigo, pigmentation lasers (eg Q-switched Nd Yag laser) is the laser of choice, in my opinion.
One thing to note is that different clinics will probably have pigmentation lasers of differing technologies and models.
In my own experience, pigmentation laser with the latest technology can certainly be very useful, but technology alone does not guarantee results.
I have come across very experienced doctors getting also really good results treating pigmentations with older laser models.
Thus the most important factor that determines good results from pigmentation laser is the clinical experience of the performing doctor.
Downtime?
If you happen to do pigmentation lasers for solar lentigo, the downtime involves redness for 1-2 days and dry scabbing for about 5-7 days, with about a couple of laser sessions.
Cost?
Pigmentation laser costs can range from $300 to $400, and this can vary between different clinics.
For treatment options of common pigmentations like solar lentigo, you can read more about them in my "Ultimate Guide to Pigmentation Treatments in Singapore".
Hope this helps!
Cheers!
Dr David Ng C H
