Does massage speed up eyebrow PMU laser removal? The evidence
Does lymphatic drainage massage speed up eyebrow PMU removal? There is no evidence. Why yellow pigment resists lasers and why not to massage for 10–14 days.
I saw a post like this on Reddit and I’ll share my thoughts on it. There are a few important points to take into consideration here.
Understanding the removal process and the role of the immune system
The very mechanism of breaking down and removing PMU pigment from the skin involves a number of pathways, one of the main ones being the work of the immune system and the macrophage cells in the skin. And indeed, pigment particles do get into the regional lymph nodes. But this process is long and quite slow. Therefore, if lymphatic drainage massage is carried out, it should be done regularly and for a long time – months.
Challenges with removing specific pigment colours
The second important fact is that the yellow PMU pigment that often remains after the use of organic PMU inks absorbs the wavelengths of tattoo removal lasers (Nd:YAG, alexandrite and ruby) very poorly and is hardly destroyed by them. Yellow pigment has its absorption spectrum in the ultraviolet range, and the wavelengths of existing commercial tattoo removal lasers are simply reflected and scattered by yellow pigments and only minimally absorbed.
- Clearance takes monthsSkin macrophages carry pigment particles to the regional lymph nodes, and this process is long and slow.
- Yellow pigment barely responds to lasersIt absorbs in the ultraviolet: it reflects and scatters the light of Nd:YAG, alexandrite and ruby lasers.
Evaluating the effectiveness of lymphatic drainage massage in PMU removal
The third, and perhaps most important, fact is that there is no evidence to date that lymphatic drainage massage somehow helps accelerate the removal of tattoo pigment and PMU from the skin. In scientific publications of the last 30 years, I have never come across any work that even put forward such a theory. Yes, it is a very appealing theory that simple lymphatic drainage massage can speed up eyebrow permanent makeup removal. And yes, there is logic and some potential explanation for this, at least I want to believe it. But as a scientist, I have to reject such a recommendation until it is proven effective, and it is not. That is, you can believe in it and even perform such massage and it may even help somehow, but until there are statistical data, unfortunately, it is just a hypothesis. Well, and there is such a concept as economic feasibility – imagine that lymphatic drainage massage really does speed up eyebrow permanent makeup removal, but only by, say, 2% (this is just a figure off the top of my head; I’m fantasising). Does it make sense to waste tens of hours of your life on this? So there has to be an evidence base and statistics; then, and only then, can you recommend something to clients. These are the laws of science and evidence-based medicine!
Important post-treatment precautions
And one more important warning – please do not massage or squeeze the skin in the first 10–14 days after the laser tattoo removal procedure! This will increase the risks of complications because there is an active aseptic inflammation process in the skin and it is very easy to shift it towards complications!
That’s all for now. I hope I have managed to cover the topic “Speed up eyebrow permanent makeup removal with massage” from the point of view of evidence-based medicine!
Frequently asked questions
Does lymphatic drainage massage speed up eyebrow tattoo removal?
There is no evidence to date: in scientific publications of the last 30 years the author has never come across any work that even put forward such a theory. Until it is proven effective, it is just a hypothesis.
Can you massage the skin after laser tattoo removal?
Do not massage or squeeze the skin in the first 10–14 days after the procedure. There is an active aseptic inflammation process in the skin, and it is very easy to shift it towards complications.
Why does yellow pigment stay after laser eyebrow removal?
Yellow pigment, which often remains after organic PMU inks, absorbs the wavelengths of Nd:YAG, alexandrite and ruby lasers very poorly. Its absorption spectrum is in the ultraviolet range, so laser light is mostly reflected and scattered.
