Sunspots

I have sunspots pretty bad on my back shoulders stomach and some on my arms and i have tried selsun blue and hipiclens (if thats right) and they havent worked. I read about a product called meladerm, never tried it but wanted to know if you knew anything about it. And if not then what could be done about it

[Bhupinder Kaur, MD]

Hello,
Sun spots or lentigines, are harmless, flat, brown discolorations of the skin which usually occur on the back of the hands, neck and face of people older than 40 years of age. They are caused by the skin being exposed to the sun over many years and are a sigh of sun damage. The only way to prevent age spots is to use liberal amounts of sunscreen before the age of forty, avoid the sun, and wear protective clothing. The newest treatment for age spots is an alpha hydroxy acid gel or beta hydroxy acid gel.  Retin-A cream, alpha hydroxyacid peels, and liquid nitrogen therapy are other options.

It is very difficult to precisely confirm a diagnosis without examination and investigations and the answer is based on the medical information provided. For exact diagnosis, you are requested to consult your doctor. I sincerely hope that helps. Take care and please do keep me posted on how you are doing.