Clearance of Yellow Tattoo Ink With a Novel 532-nm Picosecond Laser

Background and Objectives:Although technology and tattoo removal methods continue to evolve, yellow pigment clearance continues to be challenging and usually unsuccessful. We describe a case series of six tattoos containing yellow ink, successfully treated with a frequency-doubled Nd:YAG 532-nm picosecond laser. Study Design/Materials and Methods:Case series with six subjects participating for the treatment of multicolored tattoos that contain yellow pigment. Treatments performed with a frequency-doubled Nd:YAG 532-nm picosecond laser at 6-8 week intervals. Results:One subject achieved complete clearance of the treated site after one session, and five subjects required 24 treatments to achieve over 75% clearance. Minimal downtime was experienced, and no scarring or textural skin changes were observed in any of the treated sites. Conclusions:This is the first case series that demonstrates effective and consistent reduction of yellow tattoo ink using a frequency doubled Nd:YAG 532-nm laser with a picosecond pulse duration. Treatments were well tolerated and subjects had positive outcomes. This is a small observational case series from an ongoing clinical trial, and studies with a larger sample size and comparative group are needed in the future. Lasers Surg. Med. 47:285-288, 2015. (C) 2015 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.