If years of sun have left brown spots, blotchy tone or red-brown mottling on your face, chest or hands, IPL is our sun damage treatment. Intense pulsed light targets brown pigment and redness together, and over a series of sessions it may gradually fade both.
Treated spots darken before they fade, so we explain exactly what healing looks like before you start. IPL is generally started on untanned skin, which is why many people begin in autumn or winter, when sun exposure is lower. IPL is $500 per session at our Oakville clinic.
Spots, blotchiness and mottling, built up over many summers.
Sun damage rarely shows up as one thing. On the face it is often a scatter of flat brown sun spots, known medically as solar lentigines and also called age spots or liver spots, together with uneven, blotchy tone. The backs of the hands collect sun spots too, since they are exposed to the sun year after year. On the sides of the neck and the upper chest, sun damage can appear as red-brown mottling with fine visible vessels, a pattern called poikiloderma of Civatte.
Sun spots are generally benign, but they can be confused with marks that need medical attention. Any spot that is new, changing, irregular in shape or colour, or different from the others should be checked by a physician, such as your family doctor or a dermatologist, before any cosmetic treatment.
Melasma is not the same thing as sun damage. IPL can worsen melasma, so where melasma is present or suspected, IPL is generally not recommended and your skin is assessed first.
One treatment for the brown and the red together.
IPL stands for intense pulsed light. A flashlamp releases short pulses of broad spectrum light, and filters remove the wavelengths that are not needed, so the light can be tuned to its target. IPL is not a laser. In sun-damaged skin, that light is absorbed by melanin, the brown pigment in sun spots, and by hemoglobin, the red pigment in small vessels. Both heat up and are damaged, and the body gradually clears them.
That is why our clinic treats sun damage with IPL rather than laser. Sun damage is usually a mix of brown pigment and redness spread across an area, and IPL can address both in the same session. In short, IPL works on colour, not texture. For the treatment in full, see our IPL photofacial page.
Some concerns belong elsewhere. If you have only a few distinct spots, targeted freckle removal, from $175 on our price list, may be a simpler option. If your concern is texture or fine lines rather than colour, laser skin rejuvenation is the better fit.
Three areas, planned one at a time.
Face. IPL may soften sun spots and even out blotchy brown and red tone across the cheeks, forehead and nose.
Neck and chest. IPL has been used in published studies to treat poikiloderma of Civatte, the red-brown mottling described above, because it can target the pigment and the vessels together.
Hands. On the backs of the hands, IPL may gradually fade scattered age spots.
The skin of the neck, chest and hands is different from the face, so your provider sets the plan and settings area by area, and a test spot may be advised. IPL is generally best suited to lighter skin tones, because the risk of pigment change rises in darker skin, and your skin type is assessed at consultation. Each area-by-area plan is made under the medical direction of Dr. Andrea Garcia, MD CCFP.
IPL is $500 per session on our price list. If you are considering the chest or hands as well as the face, the plan and cost are confirmed at your consultation. If persistent redness bothers you too, our page on IPL for rosacea and facial redness covers that in detail. IPL is one of our non-invasive treatments.
Coffee grounds first, then clearer skin.
Worth knowing before you start: treated brown spots get darker before they get lighter.
The darkening is expected, and it is a normal part of how treated pigment clears. It is also why we are upfront that IPL for sun damage comes with some downtime. Plan around that first week and follow the written aftercare your provider gives you for IPL. Our general aftercare guidance for our in-clinic treatments covers several of our other treatments.
IPL Sun Damage Treatment Pricing in Oakville
IPL for sun damage is $500 per session. Sun damage is treated over a series, and the number of sessions, the areas and the total are agreed at your consultation, so you know the plan before you commit.
Questions about IPL and sun damage, answered.
If your question is not answered here, our team is happy to help. The clearest answer usually comes from a consultation, where your provider can assess your skin directly.
Explore our IPL photofacial pages and related skin treatments in Oakville.
If the sun has left its mark on your face, chest or hands, a consultation is the place to start. We will look at your skin and your spots, tell you honestly whether IPL is suitable, and plan a course that can run through the colder months.
Hours Of Operation:
IPL (Intense Pulsed Light) uses broad-spectrum light energy to target skin imperfections such as pigmentation, sun damage, redness, and acne.
IPL: Regular $500, Now $400
Hair Removal is a non-invasive cosmetic procedure that is designed to permanently reduce or eliminate unwanted hair.
Hair Removal: Regular $80, Now $40
The Thread Lift is an instant and invisible procedure that uses advanced, dissolvable sutures meticulously placed beneath the skin to gently lift and redefine facial and neck contours.
Thread Lift: Regular $1600, Now $800
Lip filler is a cosmetic procedure that involves injecting hyaluronic acid into the lips to add volume, enhance shape, and smooth out vertical lip lines.
Lip Filler: Regular $550, Now $399
Microneedling is a highly effective, minimally invasive procedure that harnesses your body’s natural healing process to rejuvenate the skin from within.
The hydrofacial is a highly sought-after, non-invasive facial that utilizes medical-grade aesthetic device for a complete skin renewal experience.
Hydrofacial: Regular $200, Now $99
