Sorting out Brown Spots vs. Melasma & Treatment Options

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Hyperpigmentation. This umbrella term encompasses any condition that causes the skin to become discolored. From sun damage to acne scars, there are plenty of reasons your skin can become discolored. And not all forms of discoloration are the same.

For example, what’s the difference between typical brown spots vs. melasma? And which skin discoloration treatments can help?

How to Tell the Difference

If you have brown spots, melasma or other skin discoloration, you don’t need to put up with it.

Brown spots and melasma patches look fairly similar, but the key difference is in their size. Brown spots are generally small while melasma covers larger portions of the skin. It is also more tied to hormones than typical brown spots, appearing more often in women than men, and often first emerging during pregnancy.

In most cases, laser treatments for brown spots work on melasma as well, which means you do not need to look for a separate skin treatment, though you may need to look into balancing your hormones to prevent it from recurring.

Best Laser Treatment for Brown Spots and Melasma

PicoWay® Resolve is a great option for addressing skin discoloration such as melasma. Since it has far-reaching wavelengths, they are able to penetrate deeper layers of the skin, heating and destroying the clusters of hyperpigmentation in the skin.

After a treatment session, the darkened skin begins to flake off, steadily revealing more evenly toned skin over the course of several days. While this is somewhat visible, most clients take minimal time off from work. Often, treatments are scheduled around the weekend or a holiday break.

To learn more about how laser treatments can help you reduce or eliminate skin discoloration, call our Tampa office at 813-877-8067 or head over to our contact page.