How Many Sessions To Remove A Small Tattoo?
How many sessions does it take to remove a tattoo? – As soon as Dr. Saxena determines that you are a good candidate for laser tattoo removal, we will prepare the treatment area by cleaning it and applying a topical anesthetic. We will then pass the device over the skin as it emits the laser energy.
The session time may vary based on the size of the tattoo, but this will be discussed during the consultation with Dr. Saxena. Sometimes, patients require multiple appointments before obvious results can be seen.
At this time, you will learn how many sessions it takes to remove a tattoo. Laser tattoo removal looks different for everyone since each person and their tattoo is unique. Although it is not possible to predict the number of sessions required for complete removal, most patients generally need 6 – 8 sessions.
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How long does it take to remove a tattoo with laser?
In general, it takes about six to eight sessions to remove a tattoo with laser treatment. You’ll have to wait six to eight weeks between sessions for best results. Your technician will give you specific aftercare instructions. In general, apply antibacterial ointment to your skin for several days following each procedure.
How many treatments does it take to remove a tattoo?
Tattoo Removal: How Many Sessions Does it take?
Skip to content This is our most commonly asked question and the hardest to answer without seeing the tattoo, that is why we offer a FREE consultation to give you all the information you need to make your decision. First, let’s state one thing VERY clearly. No one, no matter what their degree or their expertise, can say for certain exactly how many sessions it will take to remove YOUR tattoo. Because everyone’s immune system is different and everyone’s skin is different, all we can do is give an educated estimation.
Anyone who tells you the exact number of treatments to remove your tattoo is trying to sell you something based on false promises. The average time to remove a professionally applied tattoo ranges from 9 months to 18 months.
Some tattoos take longer, some come off faster. That is one of the reasons we have the Undo your Tattoo Guarantee. Regardless of how long it takes, you will get what you came here for; complete removal of your tattoo for a confirmed price. Some of the factors that determine how long it will take to remove your tattoo include: 1) Density of ink – The more dense the ink, the more layers of ink are in the tattoo and the longer it will take to remove the tattoo.
As we showed in an earlier blog post, we remove the ink layer by layer; the more layers, the more treatments. This does not always correlate directly to darkness. Just because a color is darker, it doesn’t mean the density is significantly greater.
What matters is how much ink is in the skin. For those of you with cover-up tattoos, you have two layers of ink, which will take more time to remove. Amateur tattoos will almost always come out faster than professional tattoos as the density of ink is usually much less.
We removed one 40-year old amateur tattoo in one treatment (though this is certainly not the norm). 2) Location on the body – The closer to the heart, the faster the tattoo can be removed. This is because the closer the tattoo is to the heart, the greater your blood pressure and the more immune cells that are passing the tattoo.
Since it is these immune cells that remove the ink, the more that pass by, the faster the tattoo is removed. This doesn’t mean we can’t take off tattoos from hands or feet, they just take a little longer than if they are on the chest or back. 3) Skin tone – The current state of laser technology does have some limitations.
- The laser doesn’t care if it removes the tattoo pigment or the pigment in your skin;
- So, if you have darker skin, we need to be wary that we don’t remove your natural skin pigment or “hypo-pigment” your skin;
How do we ensure this? By always using the proper, safe laser settings that give you an effective treatment without using too much power and changing your skin tone. Because we need to moderate the laser powers on darker skin, removing tattoos from darker skin can take longer.
In general, the lighter your skin tone, the faster we can remove the tattoo. 4) Smoking – One of the largest studies published on factors affecting tattoo removal (American Medical Association’s Archives of Dermatology) found that smoking can reduce by 70% the chance of successfully removing a tattoo after 10 treatment sessions.
Again, can we get tattoos off smokers? Of course we can, it just takes longer because smokers’ immune systems are constantly removing foreign substances from the lungs and their wound healing is not as robust as a non-smoker. If you were looking for another reason to quit, you now have it! As everyone is different and every tattoo is different, the only way for us to give you a good estimation of your removal is to come in for a free consultation.
How long does it take to see results from tattoo removal?
How Long Will Tattoo Removal Take? – On average, it takes approximately two years between 10-12 sessions to see complete removal results. The time between treatments will vary based on skin type, ink density, location of the tattoo, and your overall health will play a factor in your removal results.
Nicotine smokers are encouraged to quit due to how it will affect your results. Read more about how smoking and drinking affects tattoo removal. Removing a tattoo is a long process. We also recognize that life happens and circumstances such as weather, accidental sunburn, family emergencies, and illness are unexpected life circumstances that are factored into the two-year time frame estimate.
If you’re seeking full tattoo removal and live outside in the summer, we ask that you refrain from being in the sun or heat and avoid swimming for 10 days after treatment. If you work outside and avoiding the sun is not an option, we recommend covering up the tattoo or waiting until the fall to pick up your removal sessions again.
What is tattoo removal surgery?
Surgical removal – Surgical removal, also called excision tattoo removal, involves cutting off tattooed skin and stitching remaining skin back together. It’s the most invasive method of tattoo removal, but also the only guaranteed way to completely remove a tattoo.
It’s often less expensive than laser removal, but it will always leave a scar. As a result, it’s usually only done on smaller tattoos. Surgical excision is usually done in a plastic surgery office. You’ll be given a local anesthetic before the surgeon uses a sharp, knife-like instrument called a scalpel to cut away the tattooed skin.
Then, they’ll stitch the remaining skin back together. The procedure itself can take a couple hours, depending on the size of the tattoo. The healing process will last for several weeks. During this time, you’ll want to apply the prescribed or recommended ointment for several days to help heal your skin and avoid risk of infection.
