Dark spots are among the most treatable complaints in aesthetics, if the treatment matches the type of pigment. The main types respond to different tools, and one common condition punishes the wrong choice.
Know your pigment
Sun spots (solar lentigines) are discrete brown spots on sun-exposed areas: cheeks, hands, chest, shoulders. The most straightforward to clear.
Post-inflammatory hyperpigmentation (PIH) is the mark left after acne, ingrowns, bug bites, or any skin injury. More common and longer-lasting in deeper skin tones.
Melasma shows as symmetric brownish patches, hormone- and heat-driven. It masquerades as ordinary pigment but rebounds from heat-based treatments. It has its own playbook, and confusing it with sun damage is the most expensive mistake in this category.
Matching treatment to pigment
For classic sun spots on lighter skin, BBL photofacial is usually the efficiency winner: light energy targets the pigment, spots turn darker like coffee grounds, then flake away over a week. One to three sessions clears most cases.
For diffuse uneven tone and PIH, think in series rather than single fixes. Chemical peels lift pigment layer by layer, and microneedling remodels marked tissue while driving brightening topicals (vitamin C, azelaic acid, prescription options) deeper. Both work across all skin tones, which matters, because light-based devices need careful device and settings choices on deeper complexions to avoid creating the very marks you’re treating.
When pigment comes with texture problems like fine lines, roughness, or old acne scarring, laser resurfacing addresses both at once, trading a few days of downtime for fewer total sessions.
And whatever clears the spots, daily sunscreen keeps them cleared. The melanocytes that built the spot still live there; UV is the on-switch.
How to choose a provider
Two questions do the screening: “Is there any chance this is melasma?” (the right ones check before firing anything hot at your face) and, for deeper skin tones, “Which devices and settings do you use for my skin type, and how often?” Specific answers mean experience. Generic answers mean you’re the practice.