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Today we are going to talk about the spots we get from the sun during the summer months. There are different types: melasma or chloasma, solar lentigines and ephelides or freckles. Not all of them are the same and therefore the way to eliminate them is different.

Melasma or chloasma is a blemish of genetic and hormonal origin that appears more frequently in women on the face, although it can also appear in other areas such as the décolleté or forearms and in men.

Melasma is usually seen on the forehead, cheekbones and upper lip. It sometimes appears during pregnancy or while taking oral contraceptives. They often disappear after pregnancy but not always after stopping the contraceptive pill.

The treatment of melasma or chloasma is complicated due to its hormonal origin and it often reappears after re-exposure to the sun. Even so, it is worth treating as there is a significant improvement in the quality of the skin as well as a general lightening of the spots.

If left untreated during the winter, the result is an accumulation of melanin that appears during the summer, which becomes increasingly difficult to remove. That is why I recommend depigmenting treatments during the winter to improve or eliminate facial blemishes. Clinical studies show a good response to treatment in 70% of cases with complete disappearance of the spots in 20% of cases.

The treatments are different depending on the type of skin and the circumstances of each person. It is best to receive personalized treatment from your dermatologist.

Solar lentigines are small, rounded, well-defined spots that appear most frequently on the face, décolleté and back of the hands. They are quite unsightly and produce a sensation of aged skin. In most cases they respond well to cryotherapy or laser treatment.

Ephelides or freckles appear in fair-skinned people mainly on the cheeks and the back of the nose. They are very small light brown spots that appear or become dark and visible in the summer. In winter they become much lighter or disappear. In general, there is little point in treating them as they are part of a skin type and will most likely reappear upon re-exposure to the sun.

Dr. Virginia Sánchez