How Does Temporary Scalp Micropigmentation (SMP) Ink Fade Over Time?

The following response to a question from a member of our Hair Loss Forum and Social Community, was written by forum member “hairthere” who is a scalp micropigmentation practitioner:

How does temporary scalp micropigmentation work? What happens when the ink fades? How does it get excreted by our body exactly? Does it enter our lymphatic system? Can we be sure that it will not cause problems like cancer down the road?

I have read that temporary ink particles are coated in silicone. To my knowledge, silicone can’t be excreted from the body. What happens to the silicone when the ink fades, where does it go? What happens when we are repeating the temporary SMP? Are we accumulating silicone in our body without the knowledge of its long term effect?

First, the only true temporary pigment that I am aware of is manufactured by Beauty Medical. It is the product my clinic uses exclusively. Milena Lardi developed this product specifically to be used for scalp micropigmentation (SMP) and to disappear completely from your system over time.

This product is temporary for a few reasons. One, we only inject it at .5mm. Second, the particles in our pigment are 15 microns in size, and all perfectly round. This allows the body’s cell defense system to “eat” the particles. The pigment is absorbed by the macrophages of our immune system and is naturally excreted, like all materials the body doesn’t need, through urine for example.

The particles are not encapsulated by silicone, but by a simil-siliconic bio-compatible material that can be excreted from the body the way I said before. All the particles and substances are developed to be excreted from the body without causing any side effect.

Regarding the effectiveness in scar tissue: This varies from person to person and depends on the level of scarring. We usually recommend doing a test patch first to see how the pigment holds up over a few weeks and then proceed based on that. The great aspect of temporary SMP is that you don’t have to be concerned about the product turning color or migrating.

“hairthere”
Owner/Operator of Ahead Ink
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David
Editorial Assistant and Forum Co-Moderator for the Hair Transplant Network, the Coalition Hair Loss Learning Center, and the Hair Loss Q & A Blog.

To share ideas with other hair loss sufferers visit the hair loss forum and social community.

Technorati Tags: Hair Loss, Beauty Medical, scalp micropigmentation, SMP