Female model using personalised skin treatment to treat her melasma

Melasma Treatments

Treat and prevent the most common form of hyperpigmentation

Treat, defeat, repeat.

sustainable skincare with active ingredients

What is melasma?

Melasma (also called ‘chloasma’ and ‘pregnancy mask’) is the most common cause of hyperpigmentation. Melasma occurs when the melanin producing cells in our skin are over-stimulated resulting in brown/greyish patches of mottled pigmentation on the skin’s surface. Although more often seen in darker skin tones, it can affect anyone, with most cases first occurring in our 30s or 40s. Melasma has a strong genetic predisposition, with at least one-third of people reporting family members affected.

What does melasma look like clinically?

Melasma is normally found on the face of females and is characterised by flat brown blotches mainly affecting the following areas:

upper lip
cheeks
nose
forehead
chin

The pigmentary changes are usually bilateral and often symmetrical.

What causes melasma?

Melasma usually becomes more noticeable in the summer and improves during the winter months, so we know the sun makes melasma worse. Hormonal changes in females can lead to the sudden appearance of melasma with up to 25% of women taking the combined oral contraceptive pill, and 50% of pregnant women developing melasma. Melasma is found in males in 10% of cases so we know that other factors beside female hormones and UV light are at play but the root cause of melasma is still unknown.

How does Skin + Me treat melasma?

If you have melasma, you’ll be prescribed a personalised melasma treatment cream containing a combination of powerful, evidence-based ingredients proven to be effective in treating melasma and maintaining remission. We often use combinations of the following ingredients in our personalised solutions:

Hydroquinone
Tretinoin
Hydrocortisone

After that your melasma cream formulation changes to include:

Tretinoin
Azelaic Acid
Niacinamide

Formulated in bespoke quantities and prescribed long-term to prevent future patches appearing, this staggered approach is the best way to treat melasma.

As sun exposure has such a large effect on melasma, it’s also really important to apply regular high factor sunscreen (SPF50+ with UVA and UVB protection) to get the best results with your treatment.
If you’re looking to treat melasma you should choose, Improve my dark spots or pigmentation, during your online consultation.

How long does it take to treat melasma?

While every person is different, we expect to see the patches of pigmentation due to Melasma improving within two months of using the Hydroquinone, Tretinoin and Hydrocortisone solution nightly. Once your skin is clear, we’ll progress your treatment to a personalised solution that’s designed to maintain your results by working to prevent any future patches appearing. We’re always here to guide you through your treatment, whether you’ve got questions, need advice or want to change your formulation. We’ll check in with you to see how well you're responding, and whether you need a change in your treatment plan.

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You stick with it, we’ll stick with you

It can take a little time for your skin to adjust to its new ingredients, and for you to really see results in the mirror.

Our Dermatology Team will design a personalised treatment plan for you that evolves with your skin – increasing ingredient strengths and adjusting combinations to give you the best results.

They’ll recommend a stripped-back skincare routine too, which will help your personalised solution to get down to business.

Our expert Dermatology Team

Experts in skin, experts in care

Meet the team

FAQs

Got questions before you start? We’re here with answers. Find out everything you need to know about our treatments, pricing, delivery, results, routines and more.

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How much will I be charged?

Will my treatment increase in strength?

My skin is getting worse, what should I do?

How long will it take for me to see my results in the mirror?

Can I use my own products whilst using skin + me?

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