1.Do You Take Serious Sun Protection?

UV rays is the key factor that worsens the melasma. If you want to achieve proper treatment result and lower the relapsing rate, sun protection is very important.
In other words, no matter it is during the melasma treatment or relapsing prevention period after treatment, we must take the sun protection as the prior. If the sun protection is not enough, no matter what treatment method is taken, it’s difficult to gain ideal results. Moreover, the risk of side effects of some drugs may increase when exposed to ultraviolet rays.

Patients with melasma should take more serious sun protection that normal people. In daily life, physical sun protection is crucial, including wearing sunhat and Sun-protective clothing, using sunshade and so on to reduce the direct radiation of the UV rays to the skin. Additionally, it should be paired with a broad-spectrum sunscreen with an SPF of no less than 50, which can effectively protect against both UVA and UVB radiation. As for outdoor activities, it’s suggested to apply sunscreen for 2 to 3 times, thus to endure the consistent of sun protection effect.

2.Is There Any Actions that Damage the Skin Barrier?

Behaviors such as using a large number of skincare products at once, such as seven to eight hundred types, frequently receiving various skin care services, using facial brushes to roughly scrub areas with pigmentation, and excessive facial massage exercises to slim down the face can easily cause irritation to the skin, damage the skin barrier function, and exacerbate symptoms of melasma. What might have been faint, barely visible patches originally could gradually darken in color after this series of improper procedures.

It is recommended that everyone reduce the burden on the skin. In terms of skincare, as long as you choose products that can moisturize, you can also add a product with repairing effects if economic conditions permit. When cleaning the skin, it should be gentle and avoid excessive cleansing. As for the so-called slimming exercises, they cannot truly achieve the slimming effect, so it is better to give up as soon as possible.

3.Is There Long-term Mental Stress or Anxiety?

In clinical practice, we often encounter patients who feel anxious and uneasy because melasma on their faces cannot disappear for a long time, and this emotion is understandable. After all, in today’s society that values appearance, facial blemishes, whether they are spots or pimples, can easily trigger anxiety. However, these negative emotions often have a negative impact on the skin, disrupting its normal metabolism and affecting the balance of the endocrine system, leading to further aggravation of melasma symptoms and forming a vicious cycle of melasma anxiety melasma aggravation anxiety. It may even trigger other skin problems such as acne and alopecia areata.

Therefore, doctors often advise patients to relax and avoid mental tension and anxiety, which is not an empty phrase, but an indispensable part of treating melasma.
As for how to relax, here are two suggestions: first, cultivate other hobbies and interests, and try to shift attention away from melasma as much as possible, such as watching TV shows, exercising, etc. The second is to use cosmetics for concealer to cover chloasma, which can alleviate psychological pressure to a certain extent.

4.Have you Undergone Light-based or Energy-based Treatments During the Active Phase?

There are two stages in melasma, namely the active stage and the stable stage. During the active period, the endothelial damage area has recently expanded, the color has deepened, and the skin lesions have turned red. The stable period refers to the recent period when the skin lesion area has not expanded, the color has not deepened, and there is no redness.

During the active period, it is generally not recommended to use phototherapy as it may stimulate melanocytes, further exacerbating the symptoms of melasma. However, during the stable period, phototherapy can be considered to improve the condition of melasma, such as photon rejuvenation, dot matrix laser, Nd: YAG laser, etc. are all optional treatment methods.

As for how to accurately determine the stage of melasma, a detailed facial examination can be conducted, and professionals can develop appropriate treatment plans based on individual circumstances. However, some patients may only see “melasma” as a keyword for “photon rejuvenation” and “picosecond laser”, and overlook other important information.

5.Have you Followed the Doctor’s Advice on Combination Therapy?

There are various methods for treating melasma, including drug therapy, chemical skin rejuvenation, microneedle technology, beauty therapy, and phototherapy (such as gold microneedle, photon rejuvenation, 1064nm laser, etc.).At present, comprehensive treatment plans are often used for melasma, such as combining topical drugs (such as hydroquinone, tranexamic acid, glutathione) with laser therapy, which can often achieve synergistic and twice the result with half the effort.

However, when to initiate treatment and what treatment method to adopt require detailed diagnosis and communication with professionals face-to-face. If the treatment method is inappropriate, such as intervening at inappropriate times or overly relying on phototherapy, it may have the opposite effect and lead to worsening of melasma symptoms.

During the treatment process, it is recommended that patients have regular follow-up visits. At the same time, close communication should be maintained and treatment strategies should be adjusted in a timely manner according to changes in the condition. It should be clarified that melasma cannot be completely cured at present, and can only be improved to varying degrees.