Hyperpigmentation on the Face

Causes, Tips and TreatmentsBy Dr Vanita Rattan

We will be discussing:

• 1. The mechanism of Hyperpigmentation• 2. The causes of Hyperpigmentation on the

face• 3. How to recognise the cause• 4. How to treat different forms of

Hyperpigmentation on the face

Mechanism of Hyperpigmentation

• Hyperpigmentation occurs when any type of inflammation excites the Melanocytes (these are the cells producing the pigment melanin).

• Damage and Inflammation can occur from different sources e.g. Sun damage, Pregnancy/puberty, acne, post laser or Glycolic acid burn, medication that causes photo sensitivity or a physical injury.

Mechanism of Hyperpigmentation

Causes of damage and inflammation to

the face

Sun damage

Pregnancy/puberty

Medication that causes

photosensitivity

Post laser or Glycolic acid

burn

Acne

Physical injury

I’ve been fortunate enough to follow my passion of treating Hyperpigmentation and the best part for me is giving my clients their confidence back again.

I’ve imparted some of my experience of treating hundreds of cases of Hyperpigmentation in our clinic, so you can learn more about the cause of your Hyperpigmentation and the best way to treat different types of Hyperpigmentation.

The number one location for Hyperpigmentation is on the face, so I’ll be focussing my presentation on this today.

An experienced Aesthetic practitioner will know as soon as a client walks through the doors, the cause of the Hyperpigmentation based on the client’s age, gender, pigmentation distribution and ethnicity.

• It is important for the Aesthetic practitioner to know the most likely cause as this indicates how deep the Hyperpigmentation is and therefore how long it will take to treat it.

Classic causes for Hyperpigmentation on the face

Sun damage• This typically gives you a butterfly shaped mask with

Hyperpigmentation on the cheek bones, nose and forehead.

• This can either be in the form of small spots or in larger patches that amalgamate.

• The colour can vary from light brown to dark brown.• This usually gets worse over a period of 3-10 years and

tends to darken more in the summer as UV rays excite the cells producing the pigment melanin.

• This Hyperpigmentation will only come back again if the new skin cells are not protected with high SPF Sun block.

This is classic Hyperpigmentation following sun damage.This was treated at The Hyperpigmentation Clinic.

Post Acne

• The distribution of post acne are small- medium sized dark brown or black marks.

• The pigmentation tends to be closer to the surface which means few treatments are required to see a result.

• The Hyperpigmentation will only come back again if more acne appears.

Post Laser, Glycolic or TCA burn

• The pigmentation here tends to be more diffuse with multiple patches where the skin was burned.

• This form of pigmentation takes longer to treat as the burn tends to go deep into the skin’s dermis.

Post pregnancy

• This pigmentation tends to form on the cheeks, nose and forehead anytime within 5 years of pregnancy.

• The pigmentation that forms during or immediately after pregnancy tends to fade within a year. If this has not faded then it is better to get it treated so it does not become compounded by UV damage and darken the already hyperpigmented area.

Post Puberty Hyperpigmentation

• This tends to occur around the mouth area, in the mid teenage years.

• It tends to be more diffuse with no clear margin and is deeper in the skin so requires more than one treatment.

Polycystic ovary Hyperpigmentation

• This occurs around the chin and jaw line area.• It is accompanied with thick hair and acne in

this area.• Ideally control the hormones first with your

General Practitioners assistance, then get your Hyperpigmentation treated.

Treatment Methods• The classic form of treatment is removal of the

top layer of dead pigmented cells.• This is the mechanism used for Glycolic, TCA

peels and microdermabrasion.• This is however, only a temporary measure as the

key is to calm down the Melanocytes (the root of the problem).

• In addition Glycolic, TCA and laser can burn the skin and lead to PIH (Post inflammatory Hyperpigmentation) which means worsening of the Hyperpigmentation.

The ideal treatment does the following:

• 1. Effective: with a 50% reduction after just one treatment

• 2. Safe: Cannot burn the skin and lead to PIH• 3. Painless• 4. Minimal downtime

• Here at The Hyperpigmentation Clinic, we use a unique Mandelic based peel packed with Tyrosinase inhibitors which slow down the hyperactive melanocytes. They do not affect the normal melanocytes only those that are over producing melanin locally.

Key steps to treating Hyperpigmentation

• To learn more about Hyperpigmentation download our Free E-book from www.TheHyperpigmentationClinic.com

• To discuss your pigmentation please call to book a Free consultation on 0207-754-3580