skin tones & removal
Reth-ink
To Determine Your Skin Type:
add up the points for a total
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Your eye color is:
Light blue, light gray or light green = 0
Blue, gray or green = 1
Hazel or light brown = 2
Dark brown = 3
Brownish black = 4
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Your natural hair color is:
Red or light blonde = 0
Blonde = 1
Dark blonde or light brown = 2
Dark brown = 3
Black = 4
​
Your natural skin color (before sun exposure) is:
Ivory white = 0
Fair or pale = 1
Fair to beige, with golden undertone = 2
Olive or light brown = 3
Dark brown or black = 4
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How many freckles do you have on unexposed areas of your skin?
Many = 0
Several = 1
A few = 2
Very few = 3
None = 4
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How does your skin respond to the sun?
Always burns, blisters and peels = 0
Often burns, blisters and peels = 1
Burns moderately = 2
Burns rarely, if at all = 3
Never burns = 4
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Does your skin tan?
Never — I always burn = 0
Seldom = 1
Sometimes = 2
Often = 3
​
How deeply do you tan?
Not at all or very little = 0
Lightly = 1
Moderately = 2
Deeply = 3
My skin is naturally dark = 4
​
How sensitive is your face to the sun?
Very sensitive = 0
Sensitive = 1
Normal = 2
Resistant = 3
Very resistant/Never had a problem = 4
skin types
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Type I (scores 0–6) always burns, never tans (palest; freckles)
Picosure Pro Wavelengths: 1064, 785, 730 + 532
All ink colors
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Type II (scores 7–13) usually burns, tans minimally (light colored but darker than fair)
Picosure Pro Wavelengths: 1064, 785, 730 + 532
All ink colors
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Type III (scores 14–20) sometimes mild burn, tans uniformly (golden honey or olive)
Picosure Pro Wavelengths: 1064, 785, 730 + 532
All ink colors
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Type IV (scores 21–27) burns minimally, always tans well (moderate brown)
Picosure Pro Wavelengths: 1064, 785, 730 + 532
Black, Green, Blue, Purple, Red, Yellow + Some Reduction in Orange​
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Type V (scores 28–34) very rarely burns, tans very easily (dark brown)
Picosure Pro Wavelengths: 1064
Black, Red, Green, Blue + Some Reduction in Purple​
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Type VI (scores 35–36) never burns (deeply pigmented dark brown to darkest brown)
Picosure Pro Wavelengths: 1064
Black, Red, Green, Blue + Some Reduction in Purple​
Laser Treatment Wavelengths Affect Skin Type and Ink Color Differently
Just as tattoo inks can appear differently on dark skin, darker skin tones also absorb light and heat more rapidly than lighter tones.
Some skin tones (type V and VI) present difficulties with targeting the specific pigments due to the presence of melanin. This natural pigment, when in higher levels, will alter the effectiveness of the laser. Melanin absorbs energy, so more heat will be absorbed and dispersed through the skin while removing ink. This can cause hypopigmentation (lightening/bleaching the skin) or hyperpigmentation (darkening of the skin).
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Skin types I, II, III and IV can successfully use all 3 available wavelengths -- 1064nm, 532nm, and 755nm to treat their tattoos.
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Darker skin types V and VI can only use 1064nm wavelength to remove black, red, green, blue, and to reduce purples. The higher amount of melanin means that any other wavelength would put the client at risk of injuring their skin.
While light skin tones can typically have a laser session every 6 weeks, our specialists are trained to be more patient with darker skin tones, recommending 8 to 10 weeks between sessions to minimize hypo/hyperpigmentation and further skin damage.