Melasma is seen both in men and women. Although, it is more common in women particularly in pregnant women and who are in perimenopausal age. Melasma is also seen in women who take birth control pills and who are on Hormone Replacement Therapy (HRT).

There is no proven cause for Melasma but factors like hormonal imbalance, sun exposure, and genetic factors are usually regarded as the reasons for the problem.

Though Melasma is not a life-threatening problem as it mainly affects the face and the neck area, pigmented patches lead to unpleasant look which may affect socialization. There are two stages of Melasma, one that is affecting superficial, epidermal layer only (outer layer) of skin, and the other which may penetrate into the dermis (deeper layer) of skin. Once Melasma reaches the deeper layer of skin it may result in permanent discoloration which is difficult to treat.
Therefore, timely treatment is important.

As the saying goes “Prevention is better than cure" protecting skin from the sun is the most important precaution for which use of sunscreen is mandatory. The sunscreens available in the market are to be used cautiously as their use and effectiveness depend on the type of skin and SPF of the sunscreen.

Other options like topical creams, superficial peels, and laser therapy are available which can be used in combination. Therefore prior assessment by Dermato-Cosmetologist is a must before using them. At Dr. Sudha Vani’s Sri Skin and Cosmetology Centre, Hyderabad, we use customized special chemical peel - Melasma Magic peel.

• Avoid over the counter skin lightening creams which contain steroid creams
• Therapy with single creams is not advisable and Melasma needs proper maintenance therapy
• Avoid deeper chemical peels which may aggravate Melasma.
• Avoid sun exposure

Laser therapy is one of the treatment options for both superficial and deep Melasma. It is important that low energy laser should be used for Melasma. Dr. Sudha Vani’s Sri Skin and Cosmetology Centre have the state of the art FDA approved alma make lasers for effective treatment of Melasma.

It is important to understand that Melasma treatment involves multiple combinations of therapies with the individualized approach, which requires experience on the part of Dermato-Cosmetologist. Dr. Sudha Vani has rich experience of 19 years in the field. We at Sri Skin and Cosmetology Centre, Hyderabad customize the treatment depending on the type of Melasma.