This group seems to be fairly inactive, but just in case anyone is still monitoring I have an update to share on treatment with the Fraxel laser. I’ve had a series of 7 treatments by the Fraxel Restore Laser SR1500 (Erbium, non-ablative). Each treatment was between one month and two months apart. The results have been very good, with improvement of around 60%. My nevus is on my upper arm, and is approximately 8x4 inches. I’m a white male with light skin so I’m not sure if the treatment would be as effective for darker skinned individuals (supposedly there is a higher chance of pigmentation post laser treatment). It took a while for the condition to improve, and it really began to lighten after the 3rd treatment. Patience is essential…My nevus had gotten much dark through sun exposure during my early 20’s and this reversed most of those changes. It’s still visible, but the skin is much smoother and lighter, with greatly reduced differences between the normal skin and the pigmented skin. Each session cost $500 in Southern California so total treatment cost was $3500.
Treatment parameters were (your dermatologist will understand):
P8
L8
35 mj
Since sun exposure is the main factor in darkening the nevus and I believe a major cause in the condition overall (combined with genetic propensity), I will not go outside with sunscreen on the nevus. One I’ve found to work really well is Fallene Cotz SPF 58 for Sensitive Skin. It’s a physical block sunscreen (titanium dioxide and zinc oxide) so I think it protects much better than chemical based sunscreen. It also has a slight tint so it serves a secondary purpose of further blending the nevus into your regular skin color while protecting you. It really works well.
I’ve been meaning to share this for a while, so I hope this info helps other people. Good luck - the condition can be a huge drag but this treatment offers some hope.