Pico Laser Aftercare —
Leave The Crust Alone

A spot treated with pico turns darker soon afterwards: that is pigment lifting, not damage. How each mode looks over the coming days is on the pico laser downtime page.

Do

• Keep the area cool, clean and untouched. A cool compress eases warmth.
• Wash with lukewarm water and a gentle, fragrance-free cleanser, pat dry rather than rub, and finish with a plain moisturiser.
• Wear a hat and keep to the shade outdoors.
• Follow the written instructions for your mode.

Avoid

• Retinoids, exfoliating acids, vitamin C, brightening creams and scrubs.
• Hot showers on the face, saunas and steam rooms for the rest of the day, and heavy sweating for a few days.
• Alcohol: it keeps redness going for longer and adds to inflammation in Fitzpatrick III to V skin.

Over each treated spot, a thin crust forms and then lifts by itself over the following days. Leave it be, in the shower and on the pillow too: pulling it off early is a common reason a spot heals darker or lighter than its surroundings. The post-laser recovery guide covers the heavier crusting after resurfacing lasers such as CO2; for pico, follow this page and your written instructions.

• Keep scrubs, cleansing brushes, retinoids and exfoliating acids off the area until the skin has closed and is no longer pink.
• Avoid facials, extractions, microneedling and other laser or light treatments on the area.
• No swimming while a crust is still present.
• Sleep face-up on a clean pillowcase until the crusts have gone.

In Asian skin, daily sunscreen is the centre of aftercare after pico laser. Use a broad-spectrum product each morning, reapply it outside, and keep to the shade at midday. Where melasma is part of the plan, choose one tinted with iron oxides. No deliberate tanning while you heal, and ideally not between visits.

Prescription pigment creams such as hydroquinone or tretinoin restart only when the clinic says so; ask rather than assume.

Exercise. Light activity is fine from the next day. Hard training, hot classes and heavy sweating wait a few days.

Make-up. After toning, it can go back on once the skin has calmed, often by the next day. After spot or fractional work, wait until the surface has closed and the crusts are gone.

Your follow-up. The first week shows the skin healing; the outcome comes later. Your follow-up visit is timed to judge pigment clearance.