Countering Hyperpigmentation With Lasers: New Research

We've written about hyperpigmentation ("brown spots") on the face extensively. You can read our previous article on this topic here:

A more recent review - which analyzes and integrates earlier research on a given topic - was just published in December 2025. Check the full text of the study for free below:

The review included 16 earlier studies on using lasers for melasma. Here, the statistical outcomes of the studies were pooled, so that you can make a better judgment on the outcomes.

Women with darker skin tones are most often affected with melasma here. Excess sunlight exposure is one major cause here, although it's far more complicated and we've explained why in the huge article Bart wrote on this topic. Genetics, hormones, and inflammation can all play a role here, for instance.

Of course, melasma has consequences. Not only will your aesthetics be affected, for many people melasma also causes lower quality of life. The issue is, melasma isn't easy to reverse as it's not just limited to the top skin layers.

Hence, topical approaches don't always work, especially in the long term. That's why new treatments are necessary, and light therapy may come in here.

The 16 studies included here were only "Randomized Controlled Trials", with an intervention and control group. That way you can easily distinguish between the effects of treatment and non-treatment (many people tend to get placebo effects, which is why you'll want to make that distinction).

Study participants ranged from 36 to 46 years old. And, treatment frequency was super low, at 2-12 treatments over the course of up to 6 months. The best outcome in this review was with a 1,064 nm laser, which is kind of suprising as we have very consistent reports in our Facebook group that not everyone responds well to NIR:

The light therapy used in the review above is different though, as it's targeted higher-powered treatment of NIR at the location of the melasma.

To measure the melasma in the study, the Melasma Area and Severity Index (MASI) or its modified form (mMASI) was used. The average effect size was medium to large, meaning that the impact was quite significant and big changes were visible.

Nevertheless, again, here, some of the wavelengths were all over the place. One study used green light succesfully, for instance, and another used the 1,300 nm range.

The moral of the story? If you do have melasma, then it may be smart to seek out a clinic for laser treatment. With that approach, you'd only affect the melasma area directly, and not the rest of your skin.

There are quite a few caveats, however,

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