Does Laser Tattoo Removal Work?

For many people who have tattoos they regret, there's a question on their minds.Does laser  tattoo removal work? After all, tattoos are meant to be permanent, and they involve ink penetrating the layer of skin and settling beneath it. So the thought that there might be some relatively painless way of undoing all that ink can be difficult to believe.

Laser tattoo removal does work. But there are a number of things that people need to keep in mind when they consider the procedure. For example, they will have to take a long hard look at their tattoo and ask themselves some questions. One question is, how complicated is the tattoo? Does it have very many colors or does it just come in one color? The principle behind laser tattoo removal is that the light will break up the pigments of the tattoo. Different colors, however, respond to light in different ways.

The color black will tend to absorb the most light. That is why black ink is usually relatively easy to dissolve compared to other colors. So if you have a relatively simple tattoo, made up only of black ink, then you'll have an easier time of it. Blue ink is also relatively easy to break up. However, other colors of ink will respond to different kinds of light. So if your tattoo is made up of very many colors, the doctor or professional with the laser will have to use different kinds of lasers on your tattoo.

You can expect that a tattoo with many colors will need more time and more treatments before it can be effectively removed. Another thing to consider is how large your tattoo is. If it's relatively small, then it will be easier to undo. But if it's a large tattoo that takes up most of your back, then expect the treatment to take a while.

Another question to ask is whether the tattoo was done by an amateur or a professional tattoo artist. Generally, professionals make use of more ink when they do their tattoos. The downside of this is that it will be more difficult to break up all that additional pigment.

Other factors that will affect the tattoo removal are whether other tattoo removal techniques were tried but failed, the person's particular skin tone or color, how deep the ink went under the skin and the location of the tattoo on the person's body. There is always the risk that not all of the pigment will be disposed of. To learn more about the possibilities, make sure to have a good and long discussion with your dermatologist or other medical professional.