A newer procedure is giving hope to women suffering from what is known as the "mask of pregnancy."
The blotchy skin disorder used to be treated with bleaches and creams, but patients weren't always happy with the results. Now there's a better way to treat melasma.
Maria Roques has melasma. It may not be noticeable at first, but it bothers her when she looks in the mirror.
Melasma is hormonal disorder that causes dark patches in the skin and occurs most often in pregnancy.
"My first child, my first pregnancy it started to appear, but again, when you're pregnant all this stuff starts to happen," said Roques.
Melasma affects 45 million people worldwide, but because it's most noticeable in women with darker skin, it carries a stigma in Latin and African American cultures.
"Since my mother and my sister have it, I thought it was normal and I thought it would go away," said Roques.
Until recent years, there weren't effective treatments, but fractional laser resurfacing is changing all that.
Microscopic laser columns cause tiny wounds in the skin. Those wounds stimulate collagen and elastin production, healing the spots from the inside out.
"It's probably the best treatment currently available for the treatment of melasma. Someone like Roques will have a significant improvement and will drop from a four down to a one or even a zero," said Dr. Bill Johnson, aesthetics specialist.
Since melasma is a chronic condition, this is not a cure.
"She very likely will require some maintenance treatments over time," said Johnson.
But it will help Roques get her pre-baby face back again.
A number of local skin doctors offer fraxel laser treatment for melasma. You can also prevent the condition from becoming worse by avoiding the sun and other skin irritants.
