Serious About Removing Your Tattoo? Here's the Most Effective Treatment

Dr. Alex Kaplan knows about tattoo removal. He started Celebrity Laser Spa with wife Amy after working as a volunteer physician for the Homeboy Industries tattoo removal program, removing hundreds of tattoos from former gang members at no charge. Dr. Kaplan had a tattoo of his own removed, and he knows how important it can be to a person once they make the decision to fully remove it.

Interviewing Dr. Kaplan, I wanted to know all about the removal process. I don't have a tattoo, but plenty of my friends who are enthusiastic about removing theirs sent me in armed and ready: How long does it take? How many treatments do you need? Can anyone get it, or are some skin tones prone to discoloration and scarring?

One of Dr. Kaplan's patients let us in on her treatment — she is removing hers for work — so we were able to get a firsthand look at the entire process: from the numbing cream to the laser treatment. Dr. Kaplan and Celebrity Laser Spa utilize the Picosure laser, which has been proven to remove tattoos in half the treatments as other tattoo removal lasers. (Typically three to six sessions are needed, depending on the size of the tattoo, the ink used, etc.)

See for yourself what the process entails, learn the costs associated with removal, then decide if laser tattoo removal is right for you.

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