Pulsed Light Therapy

Intense Pulsed Light Therapy (IPL) was pioneered by Dr. Patrick Bitter Jr. and less painful and a less risky a newest method used in tattoos remove this days. . A gel is applied to the skin and then a wand is used to emit pulses of light onto the skin area being treated.

Instead of laser light, it uses high intensity light in a way very similar to the laser but there are many tattoo removal experts who do not recommend IPL. Even if it does work a little better, the bad news is that it also carries a heftier price tag – one clinic offering a price of $10 per pulse.

Depending on how many pulses per session your tattoo requires, IPL is definitely not the way to go unless of course your money grows on trees.

There are actually two different types of this procedure. You have the Intense Pulsed Light Therapy which we just discussed and then you have what is called Q-switched laser. The difference between the IPL and the Q-switched laser is the type of light that they use.

IPL uses a broad spectrum light which covers a larger area of skin. People that have larger tattoos that they want removed would be candidates for this type of treatment. Q-switched laser uses a narrower beam of light which makes it the ideal treatment for people with smaller tattoos.

IPL was originally used for hair removal and different types of vein conditions. If you know anyone that has ever had laser hair removal they probably have compared the feeling to someone popping you with a rubber band multiple times in the same spot. So it’s not as painful as dermabrasion (I don’t think anything is) but it still has some amount of discomfort or pain associated with- including the major hit to your bank account. And the larger your tattoo is the more expensive this procedure will be.

The risks for this procedure are minor but nevertheless they are still there. Intense Pulse Light Therapy also runs the risk of burning your skin, permanent discoloration and scarring. So if you don’t mind feeling like someone is popping you with a rubber band on your bare skin over and over again, you bank account taking a huge hit, and the risk of your skin being permanently disfigured for life then go for it. It will remove the tattoo.