Healthy Skin Association » Tattoo removal

TATTOO REMOVAL AND SKIN CARE

Alto — Sat, 22 May 2010 16:42:01 +0000

Do you have a tattoo and are now considering the various tattoo removal methods? Consider the following options:

Laser surgery

The most common method of tattoo removal is by laser surgery. Pulses of highly concentrated light beams shatter the ink of the tattoo into tiny fragments which are cleared out by the body’s immune system. It usually takes more than one treatment and this increases the risk for damage to the skin. Experts in tattoo removal claim that new technology has reduced the complications of scarring and are either minimal or non-existent. Treatment afterwards may include:

• Apply an antibiotic ointment and a sterile dressing three times a day.
• Apply cool compresses to reduce discomfort. Take a non-aspirin medication for pain.
• Shower as directed by the doctor.
• Watch for signs and symptoms of infection such as crusting, redness and oozing. Call the doctor to report any of these symptoms.
• For three months, wear a sun block with an SPF of 25 or higher and no makeup in the area treated.

Tattoo Removal Reviews – Healthy Skin Association

Alto — Tue, 30 Mar 2010 13:55:46 +0000

Tattoo Removal Reviews

Tattoo Removal Reviews

When you are looking for a tattoo removal product, you need to educate yourself about the products by reading some tattoo removal reviews.

It’s been our goal to focus on reviewing the numerous tattoo removal methods consumers are considering. We look at the claims companies make regarding their products and treatment methods to remove a tattoo. Our tattoo removal reviews have covered laser treatments, surgical removal, and tattoo removal creams, to name a few.

In our tattoo tattoo removal reviews, we’ve discovered a number of reasons why many people should consider or not consider a particular treatment to remove their unwanted tattoos. A decision whether or not to choose a certain method often depends on the person and the financial, mental, and physical cost they are willing to endure.

Read entire article: Tattoo Removal Reviews

Tattoo Removal Cost

Alto — Fri, 19 Feb 2010 21:41:06 +0000

Tattoo Removal Cost and the method used for the procedure are possibly the two greatest obstacles faced once the decision has been made to remove a tattoo. Tattoo Removal has never been a fun project, but when you inject tattoo removal cost into the mix the prospect becomes even less appealing.

Up until the last 20 years or so the methods were fairly limited and results could be less than desirable. Since we are living in the 21^st Century lets concentrate on the tattoo removal cost of the methods available today.

Read entire article: Tattoo Removal Cost

Tattoo Removal Cream

Alto — Fri, 12 Feb 2010 18:56:48 +0000

Tattoo removal cream products claim to offer the ability to remove permanent tattoo pigment without inconvenience, irritation or discomfort. That is just a marketing technique used by tattoo removal cream manufacturers or affiliate marketers to coax a few dollars from unsuspecting, trusting souls who want to believe such a process is possible at such a low tattoo removal cost. You may have been in Oz when the tattoo was applied, but reality is a wicked witch when it comes to tattoo removal cream as an effective tattoo removal product. One skin pigment fade product manufacturer even goes so far to say – Topical creams are generally only effective on epidermal hyperpigmentation. ¹ That means tattoo removal cream does not have the ability to penetrate beyond the epidermis (top) layer of skin to the dermis (2nd) layer of skin where all tattoo pigments reside. They do not have the power to reach and remove tattoo ink by themselves.

Tattoo Removal Cream continued…

Civant Skin Care. Does Meladerm® work on all kinds of hyperpigmentation? www.civantskincare.com/faq.html#6 ↩

Topical Tattoo Removal Cream

Alto — Mon, 04 Jan 2010 20:32:47 +0000

: Are topical tattoo removal cream products effective?

Topical Tattoo Removal Cream

There are three layers to the skin: the epidermis, the dermis, and the subcutaneous layer, with tattoo pigment being deposited in the second layer, or the dermis. The top layer of the skin, the epidermis, is the part we see when looking at the skin. It is also this layer which protects the body from germs and bacterial infections and seals in moisture contained in the body.

The Epidermis contains living cells which are then covered by a thin layer of dead cells cells that are constantly moving to the surface as the epidermis renews itself. The dead cells are pushed to the surface as the new ones are produced at the base of the epidermis. The dead cells eventually flake away to reveal a new, smooth, glowing layer of skin beneath.

The epidermis is also the layer of skin that contains the pigment producing cells known as melanocytes. The melanocytes produce skin pigment known as melanin. The more melanocytes a layer of skin contains the more melanin is produced and the darker the skin. The fewer the melanocytes the less melanin is produced and the lighter the skin. Freckles are produced because the melanocytes are not evenly dispersed in the lower levels of the epidermis, creating spots of pigmented skin separated by areas of skin totally devoid of skin pigment.

The question is, does a topical tattoo removal cream, also known as bleaching cream, whitening cream, fade cream or lightening cream or gel have the ability to penetrate through the epidermis to the dermis and remove tattoo pigment?

Continue reading Tattoo Removal Reviews - Topical Tattoo Removal Cream…

TCA Tattoo Removal

dexter — Wed, 09 Sep 2009 13:59:52 +0000

As a tattoo removal agent Trichloroacetic Acid, commonly abbreviated as TCA (TCA tattoo removal) , has been successfully tested in two medical studies and mentioned in a third study which we could not confirm.

The first known medical study performed to test the efficacy of TCA as a tattoo removal agent was the six year study from1979 through 1984 by two British Plastic Surgeons, Dr T. A. Piggot and R.W. Norris of the Department of Plastic Surgery, Newcastle General Hospital, Newcastle, England.

The Piggot/Norris medical study was inspired by the 1972 published report of a 4 year study by Surgeon Captain R.W.B. Scutt, Dermatologist, F.R.C.P (Fellowship of the Royal College of Physicians) concerning the incident of tattoo regret among the tattooed population of sailors in the Royal Navy between 1963 and 1966. The percentage of tattoo regret among the study group was as high as 70% by the time they were married. At the time, it was discovered that about 500 sailors were acquiring hand tattoos and about 4,000 sailors were acquiring forearm tattoos annually. This eventually led to the discouragement of tattoos on young recruits entering Naval training beginning in the late 1960′s and eventually the British Parliament passing a Bill against the tattooing of minors in 1969. Continued at TCA Tattoo Removal…

TCA Report Coming Soon

dexter — Fri, 28 Aug 2009 15:27:48 +0000

We’re alerting everyone to an upcoming report on TCA as a tattoo removal product. There is no perfect tattoo removal product on the market. Laser gets better press than it sometimes deserves. It can burn, leave scars and fail to remove some of the lighter pigment colors at an extremely high price. IPL is a form of light used to remove tattoos, but it also has its drawbacks.

Our upcoming report on TCA tattoo removal will be very revealing and of major interest to those currently considering the removal of a tattoo.

Stay tuned, you won’t be disappointed.

For Healthy Skin, Who Do You Trust?

dexter — Sun, 16 Aug 2009 19:29:47 +0000

When economic conditions become depressed, as they currently are, how does one know who to trust when it comes to something as important as the removal of a tattoo?

First of all look at the track record of the person or entity dispensing the information. Tattoo removal products that have been around a while are more likely to have a trail of information about them that can give clues as to their honesty and integrity. Look at their site and be sure to checkout the guarantee offered by the company. If they stand behind their product by offering a short, to the point and easily understood guarantee that gives plenty of time to test the product, then they are more than likely a trustworthy company.

If a product offering is being made by a company that started as the economy started going bad they could be experiencing financial problems which cause them to offer a poor or no guarantee at all.

Always make sure you understand the terms of the guarantee. Call or email the company if necessary for clarification.

If they have no phone number or email address displayed it might be best to avoid them all together. Why would a company with any integrity offer no way to communicate with them?

Anonymous communication forms also offer a glimpse into the way a company does business. If they are anonymous you have to wonder why they wish to remain hidden.

In times of financial distress it is best to stick with the older established companies that sell the type of tattoo removal product you are interested in. If they all operate the same way, in an anonymous fashion that should give a hint as to the reliability of that industry’s entire removal method.

In the end we are all responsible for our decisions and actions.

Prudence should be the foundation for all financial decisions in a bad economy.

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The Anatomy of a Tattoo

Alto — Sat, 08 Aug 2009 17:14:47 +0000

Tattoo Inks Are An Unknown Quantity

Tattoo ink manufacturers are not required by law to list their ingredients. Many tattoo artists mix their own formulas and consider their mixtures “trade secrets”. These tattoo inks are actually pigments suspended in a variety of carrier solutions. Some are made from ABS plastic for the vibrancy of the colors, some are vegetable dyes, but the vast majority are made from metal salts. The main concern with the pigments is what is in them besides the carrier solutions and the dyes.

Tattoo shops that do not adhere to strict safety precautions may be exposing their customers to a wide variety of infections as the artist dips the needle in an infected person and then back into the ink container, then into a new customer’s skin. Fortunately most shops are aware of these dangers and take all precautions established by local and state health departments.

Pigment Toxicity

Some pigments can cause an allergic reaction between the ink and skin. If available, look at a MSDS sheet to determine what the possible reactions might be. The reactions can result in photo sensitivity of the tattoo to natural and artificial light or even scarring. The glow in the dark inks, or those that react to black light, can be harmless, radioactive or toxic. The ABS plastic based pigments can prove very difficult to remove should the client choose to have the tattoo removed at a later date. Most inks pose no threat or visible reaction to the skin, but the lack of regulations make some inks risky, be sure to use a reputable artist who will not mind explaining the components of the ink used in your tattoo.

Pigment Carriers

The job of the carrier is to keep the pigment from clumping and in a fluid consistency, inhibit contamination and ease the injection of the ink into the skin. The safest and most common carriers are ethyl alcohol, glycerin, purified water, propylene glycol, witch hazel, and listerine. In the “old days” it was not uncommon to use various forms of alcohol, usually denatured, and other toxic liquids, chemicals or contaminated water.

Tattoo Pigment Being Injected into the Dermis

BLACK: made of iron oxides, carbon, or logwood. “Natural black pigment is made from magnetite crystals, powdered jet, wustite, bone black,and amorphous carbon from combustion (soot). Black pigment is commonly made into India ink. Logwood is a heartwood extract from Haematoxylon campechisnum, found in Central America and the West Indies.”

BROWNS: made of ochre. “Ochre is composed of iron (ferric) oxides mixed with clay. Raw ochre is yellowish. When dehydrated through heating, ochre changes to a reddish color.”

RED: made of cinnabar, cadmium red, iron oxide, or napthol. “Iron oxide is also known as common rust. Cinnabar and cadmium pigments are highly toxic. Napthol reds are synthesized from Naptha. Fewer reactions have been reported with naphthol red than the other pigments, but all reds carry risks of allergic or other reactions.”

ORANGE: made of disazodiarylide, disazopyrazolone, or cadmium seleno-sulfide. “The organics are formed from the condensation of 2 monoazo pigment molecules. They are large molecules with good thermal stability and colorfastness.”

YELLOW: made of cadmium yellow, ochres, curcuma yellow, chrome yellow, or disazodiarylide. “Curcuma is derived from plants of the ginger family; aka tumeric or curcurmin. Reactions are commonly associated with yellow pigments, in part because more pigment is needed to achieve a bright color.”

GREEN: made of chromium oxide (“Casalis Green” or “Anadomis Green”), Malachite, Ferrocyanides, Ferricyanides, Lead chromate, Monoazo pigment, Cu/Al phthalocyanine, or Cu phthalocyanine. “The greens often include admixtures, such as potassium ferrocyanide (yellow or red) and ferric ferrocyanide (Prussian Blue).”

BLUE: made of azure blue, cobalt blue, or Cu-phtalocyanine. “Blue pigments from minerals include copper (II) carbonate (azurite), sodium aluminum silicate (lapis lazuli), calcium copper silicate (Egyptian Blue), other cobalt aluminum oxides and chromium oxides. The safest blues and greens are copper salts, such as copper pthalocyanine. Copper pthalocyanine pigments have FDA approval for use in infant furniture and toys and contact lenses. The copper-based pigments are considerably safer or more stable than cobalt or ultramarine pigments.”

VIOLET: made of manganese violet (manganese ammonium pyrophosphate), quinacridone, dioxazine/carbazole, and various aluminum salts. “Some of the purples, especially the bright magentas, are photoreactive and lose their color after prolonged exposure to light. Dioxazine and carbazole result in the most stable purple pigments.”

WHITE: made of lead white (lead carbonate), titanium dioxide, barium sulfate, or zinc oxide. “Some white pigments are derived from anatase or rutile. White pigment may be used alone or to dilute the intensity of other pigments. Titanium oxides are one of the least reactive white pigments.”

Tattoo Science

Electric tattoo guns create thousands of puncture wounds in the skin so that the tattoo pigment can be injected to form the tattoo. The ink particles are effectively trapped by a network of connective tissue in the fibroblasts, a type of cell found in connective tissue that produces fibers such as collagen. It is not known for sure, but fibroblasts may last the lifespan of the individual receiving the tattoo.

This entire process causes damage to the epidermis and the dermis and become blended together as a result of the pulverization of the junction of the two layers. The body responds by bleeding up through the skin as a result of the severed capillaries. The immune system responds by swelling to shut down the blood flow. The immune response cells then begin cleaning up by flushing the ink through the lymph system. At first the ink is dispersed in the upper areas of the skin, but within 1 to 2 weeks it gathers into a more concentrated area as new tissue begins to form around the ink and traps it in the dermal fibroblasts. After a month the two layers of skin have reformed to trap the ink and within 3 months the tattoo ink is completely surrounded by connective tissue that holds the ink in place, although over time it will begin to subside deeper into the dermis, or second layer of skin. By the time the tattoo pigment has combined with the dermal fibroblasts it is highly unlikely a simple tattoo removal cream could ever remove the tattoo ink.

Final Thought

What all this means is be sure to think long and hard before getting a tattoo. Find out who runs the cleanest shop in the area and make sure the design is something you are willing to live with for the rest of your life.