Skin & Complexion
Darkened patches, spots and texture changes caused by excess pigment and cumulative sun exposure.
Physician-led assessment · individualized care · Vancouver clinic
Understanding Hyperpigmentation, Sun Spots & Sun Damage
Maybe you've started reaching for more concealer, or a summer's worth of freckles never quite faded this year. Brown spots and uneven tone tend to creep up slowly, then one day you notice them in a photo or under the car's visor mirror. Hyperpigmentation is a darkening of the skin from extra melanin, and it most often shows up as sun spots (solar lentigines), freckling, uneven patches and a duller look on the face, hands, chest and shoulders.
Those spots are the visible sign of years of sun exposure, which also affects the skin's texture, tiny vessels and collagen. Most sun spots are harmless, and once we've checked that each one is what it looks like, the pigment responds very well to treatment matched to your skin tone. The result is brighter, more even skin you don't feel you need to cover up.
Related Presentations
These focused pages explain different patterns within this concern.
Causes and Contributing Factors
The main driver is ultraviolet radiation from the sun and from tanning devices, which stimulates pigment-producing cells (melanocytes) to make more melanin and, over years, damages skin structure. This leads to localized clusters of pigment such as sun spots, as well as broader unevenness in tone and texture. Genetics and skin type influence susceptibility, and other forms of hyperpigmentation can follow inflammation, acne or injury. Pigment changes are best understood as a record of light exposure that builds up over many years.
Signs and Symptoms
Assessment
Your consultation is with one of our senior laser technicians or cosmetic health and skincare advisors, with our physicians reviewing any spot that needs a closer medical look. We look at each spot's colour, borders, symmetry, size, texture and whether it has changed, along with your skin type and sun history. Any spot with irregular or changing features is checked by a physician, sometimes with a biopsy, before cosmetic treatment. Your plan is then built around your skin tone, the season, any events coming up and your budget.
Cosmetic consultations are complimentary.
Prevention and Ongoing Care
Daily broad-spectrum sunscreen is the most important part of any pigment plan, because it protects your results and helps stop new spots forming. Pigment-directed ingredients and antioxidants brighten tone between treatments, and a gentle routine keeps the skin calm, which matters especially for deeper skin tones that can darken after irritation. A hat and shade on bright days add extra protection.
Our team can recommend a routine for your skin tone, and professional skincare is available in our online shop.
Treatment Options
These are some of the options connected to this concern. The appropriate plan depends on assessment, suitability, and your goals.
Care starts with confirming any suspicious spot is harmless and with daily sun protection. From there, the pigment is treated with an approach matched to your skin tone.
Laser and light treatments are performed by our senior laser technicians and cosmetic health and skincare advisors under the medical direction of Dr. Gidon Frame.
Uses selected laser and light-based wavelengths, guided by assessment, to help address excess pigment, sun damage and uneven skin tone.
A controlled chemical solution that encourages renewal of the skin's surface and helps concerns such as uneven pigment, post-acne marks or rough texture.
A physician-guided topical and skincare program using evidence-based ingredients to help control acne, oil, inflammation and post-acne marks.
For the fuller picture, explore the treatment pages above or discuss the options during a consultation.
Many patients need only one of these. Your plan combines them only when a combination adds to your result.
Medical Assessment
Medical assessment is important before cosmetic treatment of any spot that is new, growing, changing in colour or shape, asymmetrical, has irregular or blurred borders, is larger than most others, itches, bleeds, crusts or does not heal. The ABCDE features (asymmetry, border irregularity, colour variation, diameter, evolution) are a helpful guide. When in doubt, have a physician examine the spot first.
Frequently Asked Questions
Harmless spots tend to be flat, even in colour and stable over time. Spots that are new, changing, asymmetrical, multi-coloured, irregularly bordered, larger than the others, or that itch, bleed or don't heal should be examined by a physician. Our physicians confirm a spot is harmless before it's treated cosmetically.
Yes. Some light and laser treatments carry a higher chance of pigment change in deeper skin tones, so the technology and settings are matched to your skin. Peels and medical skincare are also adjusted to suit you, and your consultation sets out a route that's well suited to your skin.
New spots can form over time because sun exposure continues. Daily sunscreen, good skincare and occasional maintenance sessions keep your skin looking even and bright for the long run.
Physician Assessment
An assessment can help clarify what may be contributing, which options may be appropriate, and what a reasonable next step could look like for you.
Visit Our Clinic
Anti-Aging Medical & Laser Clinic combines medical assessment, individualized planning, physician oversight, and a broad range of treatment options in its Vancouver clinic.
Bring your questions, treatment history, and goals. Your provider can help you understand appropriate options, expected recovery, and realistic outcomes.
Make an Appointment
Use our consultation form below and the clinic can guide you toward the appropriate starting point.
