ABSTRACT
Intense pulsed light (IPL) sources emit noncoherent, polychromatic pulsed light to induce photo thermal destruction of chromophores in the skin. IPL has been used in the treatment of a variety of cutaneous diseases. IPL has been described in current literature as a therapy for the treatment of a variety of disorders of hyperpigmentation including melasma, lentigines, Poikiloderma of Civatte (POC), nevus spilus, cafe au lait macule, Becker's nevus, epidermal nevus, post-inflammatory hyperpigmentation (PIH), stasis dermatitis, and Riehl's melanosis. This chapter describes multiple protocols and studied in a variety of these pigmented lesions. Melasma is multifactorial, and pathogenesis may include genetic predisposition, pregnancy, cosmetics, medications, hormone therapies, phototoxic drugs, and ultraviolet radiation. Melasma can be classified histologically, with treatment implications, into three patterns based on the location of melanin deposition: epidermal, dermal, and mixed pattern. Lentigines and ephelides are commonly observed lesions by physicians. Lentigines tend to occur after adolescence and vary in size and colour.
