Tattoo Removal Options

At the time, your tattoo may have seemed like a fantastic idea. You were young, not as bright as you are now, but you thought you were cool. Now, older and more mature you may be rethinking you tattoo choice. Considering Tattoo Removal is not uncommon and these days, it's not quite out of the question of affordablity. 

There are several ways to remove a tattoo, make a tattoo less visible, or cover a tattoo with a different image. The fact is, most ways are going to be painful, and they are not going to be free. If you are okay with these and still want to remove a tattoo, this information may be for your benifit in your quest for tattoo removal.  

Understanding that a tattoo is a dermal pigmentation, meaning it is a mark on the skin that is created by putting pigment into the skin.The pigment is put into the skin and because of how deep into the layers of the skin tattoo are, they are made this way to be relatively permanent.  

Available today are several methods of tattoo removal all with different results but with the same goal in mind. How long one has had a tattoo, the location on the body, and the size of the tattoo is all taken into consideration by the physician when make a decision on what method of removal will be used.

Surgically removing the tattoo is one of the most common methods of tattoo removal. The advantage here is the tattoo can be completely removed in one sitting especially if it is a smaller tattoo, Larger tattoos, however, require more then one surgical removal sessions where the middle of a tattoo is removed during the early appointments, the outer sides removed later. The process of surgically removing tattoos includes an injection of a local anesthetic to numb the tattoo area after which the tattoo is removed. The outer edges are then brought together and sutured. With this procedure, there is a lower amount of bleeding which is easily controlled with electrocautery. In some cases involving large tattoos, a skin graft taken from another part of the body may be necessary.

 The tattoo is literally scarped off when using the method of Rubbing. Not only is it a annoying procedure but it is intensely painful. Nonetheless it is still practiced to this day.. There are two ways by which a tattoo is rubbed off the skin:

• Dermabrasion The method of dermabrasion uses a freezing solution after which the skin is sanded with a abrasive rotary instrument that causes the skin to shed and peel. There is some bleeding, a dressing is immediately applied to the area.
• Salabrasion The tattoo removal method of salabrasion works by using a local anesthetic around the tattoo and then a solution of water and salt is put on the tattoo. An abrading tool similar to what is used with dermabrasion, even a tool such as a block of wood wrapped covered in medical gauze, is used to quickly and forcefully scrape at the area.The tattoo area then becomes red, a dressing is then applied.

Laser tattoo removal is the most common and considered to be the best method for tattoo removal .It is expensive, requires the person wanting tattoo removal to return for mulitiple sessions but the method of laser tattoo removal is relatively pain free and blood free compared to the other methods of tattoo removal. The results of Laser tattoo removal have shown to either completely remove any visible signs of the tattoo or reduce the visibility greatly. The laser tattoo removal involves using a laser pulse to remove the tattoo. This breaks up the tattoo pigment, which are removed from the body by the scavenger cells.

There aren't many options for at home tattoo removal. But you can fade your tattoo over time with a chemical peel. Chemical peel should not be used if your intentions are complete removal of your tattoo right away. At home tattoo removal with a chemical peel can be a safe way to gradually lighten and fade your tattoo when more expensive options aren't available.

Withen just a few applications you will start to notice results. Picture at right is a 20% Chemical Peel solution. 20% is an appropriate starting formula. It will show results but please keep in mind that these are not your local beauty counters products. Even a 20% chemical peel solution can cause damage if not used according to instruction. For at home tattoo removal, it is the safest option available though.