Skin Care Talk banner

Tranexamic Acid for melasma?

270K views 561 replies 72 participants last post by  tiny307 
#1 ·
here in brazil i realize that the doctors treat melasma very differently. they treat melasma here with this acid called tranexamic, which is a medication that is used for women, who have heavy periods, so i don't get why its used for the melasma.

a lot of doctors prescribe this is a topical, but mainly orally, along with absorbic acid. some doctors even do tranexamic injections, into the darker areas of the melasma, and say it lightens the melasma.

i've been trying to do research about it, and i find a lot of articles about doctors in asia who use this method. did anyone ever hear about this?

here are a couple of articles i found that explain more how it works.

All About Skin Lightening: Featured Ingredient: Tranexamic Acid

Tranexamic Acid
 
#2 ·
http://www.skincaretalk.com/newreply...reply&p=225203

Ladol - a couple of threads are in the Skin Lightening section talk about tranexamic. One thread is about a cream, UNT, which tranexamic is in. I bumped the thread in the SCT section so that you could see it.

The other thread is Look How Light I have Become - CuteBlackBoy reported using tranexamic.

I would check those out. HTH






Quote: Originally Posted by ladolcevita

here in brazil i realize that the doctors treat melasma very differently. they treat melasma here with this acid called tranexamic, which is a medication that is used for women, who have heavy periods, so i don't get why its used for the melasma.

a lot of doctors prescribe this is a topical, but mainly orally, along with absorbic acid. some doctors even do tranexamic injections, into the darker areas of the melasma, and say it lightens the melasma.

i've been trying to do research about it, and i find a lot of articles about doctors in asia who use this method. did anyone ever hear about this?

here are a couple of articles i found that explain more how it works.

All About Skin Lightening: Featured Ingredient: Tranexamic Acid

Tranexamic Acid
 
#5 ·
i read those treads, but nobody talks about the injections. here the doctor injects the tranexamic acid into the darker area, where the melasma is. my appointment is next week, so i will ask more information about how this works. as for the oral meds, it is given to women who notice their melasma is much darker around their periods, so this medication helps make their periods less, since they can't take anything with hormones, like a birth control pill,which will make their melasma worse, but i haven't read anywhere how this works, so i will ask my dermatologist to explain.
 
#6 ·
I had my first injection this week on the forehead..anesethic was used as it is intradermal to be followed by one each month for 4 months. I am only having one area treated (out of choice) as I want to see how it goes and am in no hurry as I am sure it will work. I am also using UNT Ex White topically in conjunction.

It was a bit painful but nothing unbearable and I got my GP to refer me under NHS (UK) so its free.

Whilst I am taking measures to eradicate the problem, I have come to accept there's more to me than this cosmetic condition and count my blessings that I have general good health (no doubt there is a hormonal imbalance) but it does not control my life. Sometimes things only start to improve once you take the focus away from the very situation you TOO focused on. I would urge all you sisters to learn to love the melasma while it is there and not CURSE it because it will get worse with toxic thoughts. Blessings to all
 
#7 ·
I also find out about tranexamic acid but don't find any product which has this acid in it other than UNT product. So I ordered and got some UNT products which has 3% tranexamic acid in it. Not sure if 3% is enough to treat melasma but I am using it now. Haven't heared about injections that would be intersting if melasma can be treated by having injections on the melasma area.

aquarian 777 are you taking the same injections that Lado talk about. Are you taking to treat melasma.
 
#10 ·
Hi, yes the injections are for stubborn dermal melasma. The UNT products are so mild that I am not sure if they will work but perhaps used in combination over a period of time, they might make a difference. I have been I should see a difference after 3-4 treatments (one a month) as the pigment starts to break down. Although I have it on cheeks as well I wanted to test it out on the forehead first as I would rather treat it slowly but surely. Also getting my endocrine system checked out as low thyroid may not be the sole issue. The thing is I feel so fit and healthy so just not sure what's going on. As a result of trying to keep out of sun I have become deficient in Vitamin D so keep a check on that as well. Will keep you posted as soon I start to see a difference.
 
#8 ·
Cute black boy is using this acid and he got shipped from Japan I guess. he claimed that its quite expensive as well. I would be interested if someone or cute can give us the name so that we can ask or look for someone to ship from Japan. Cute knows a lot more about this acid.
 
#9 ·
hey everyone, my dermatologist gave me a prescription of a serum with tranexamic acid, 5% for my melasma. he says it is okay to use while i am on accutane, so i hope this will help lighten up the melasma. he also does the injections as i mentioned before, but said the injections are used for the stubborn dermal melasma. my next visit is at the end of this month, so i will ask more about the injections, and if maybe i can do the injections for my dermal melasma.
 
#11 ·
thanks for sharing this aquarian. i have a slight thyroid issue. i have a hyper active thyroid. at the current moment, it is mild, and the doctor does not want to treat it with any medications, as she feels that the medication can fix one problem and make another problem appear, and since its mild, to make sure with another blood test in 3 months, that it hasn't progressed, but my concern is that even though its a mild issue, that this is the cause of my melasma. ah gosh so much to worry about!
 
#12 ·
Thanks Aquarian - Please keep us upto date. I have never heard about this injection treatment before and wondering if its really help in melasma. I will be very interested as I am fighting with this melasma for so.....long. Can you give me in detail how do they give you these injection, how many you have already and have seen any improvement. What are the expectation about treating melasma with injection. The doctore who is giving you injctions is a dermatologist. Sorry about so many questions.

Thanks
 
#13 ·
Hi everyone! I was researching about melasma and just bumped into this wonderful site researching about the Tranexamic Acid, and found this topic. As I am also from Brazil, I'd like to ask anyone who lives here to keep us posted about the average price found in capitals to treat the melasmas with the tranexamic acid injections, and would also reinforce the choir of anxious girls waiting for Aquarian777 to keep us updated about the results! I'm really eager to believe this treatment may work much better than any other from what I have read... my kindest regards to all!
 
#14 ·
hi luciana, where in brazil do you live? in sao paulo the injections where my derm is, charged i believe, 60 reais per injection, and you need to do at least 12 injections total. the cream he made for me with 5% tranexamic acid along with some other stuff, i got at the farmácia de manipulação for about 160 reais. was expensive, but with it. i still have a lot and its been 3 months i am using it. i wasn't able to do the injections, as i didn't have time, and moved back to the states. unfortunately one session would not be enough, so my doctor did not recommend it.
 
#15 ·
Hi ladolcevita, thanks for your reply! So, I live in Atibaia now, which is a city at about 1 hour from Sao Paulo, but as I'll probably be going there every morning in the next months, I would really like to see if it is possible for me to attend any doctor who could try that on me.

Oh, Gosh! So the treatment is much cheaper than I thought! 60 reais or about it per injection is great! I was already thinking it would cost something like 600 reais each. Is there a way we could use for you to give me his contact? I still haven't found a doctor who uses it. Do you have a Facebook account? Or write me at my hotmail account, there's an underscore separating my first and last names. Can you look for me there? I really need an indication, I don't know where else to look, and haven't found any doctor who I could test it with... and I promise that, if it happens for me to go there, I'll make all the results available here at the forum, even with pics somewhere if it is ok to post it here...

Can you try to reach me through any other mean for us to talk about it?
 
#16 ·
Hi everyone!
I've bought the UNT products (the whole range of tranexamic acid ones), and tell you what: I had been paying an absurd for the Ada Tina products and have used them for more than 6 months with no significant results, and in less than a month, some of my spots have almost disappeared using the UNT products! I'm really eager to try the injections with tranexamic acid, because I think if such small concentration in UNT products have already presented results, it must be worth trying the injections!
I've talked to the very dear La Dolce Vita and have the contact of a doctor here in Brazil, but I'm waiting for summer to finish here so that I can start a decent treatment (I'm planning to have a peeling to minimize the darkest areas, and start with the tranexamic acid injections right after that, using the UNT products as a background maintenance/ home care). I'm trying to get good pics of my skin as it is now, and as soon as I have everything going, I'll let you know.
Brazilian kisses!
 
#19 ·
Yes, I've used this before. I had some good results, but did not get rid of the melasma. I was living in Brazil at the time, where the dermatologist also performs injections of tranexamic acid into the melasma. That I never did, as I moved away at that point and never had a chance to try it. It works well however for dermal melasma. I wish you luck, melasma is no fun

I never could find the topical here in the US. Do you live in America?

p.s I never tried the tablets, and I have very heavy periods but my OBGYN won't even let me try this, have no idea why. Are you using the tablets or topical?
 
#20 ·
I'm using the tablets. Was prescribed them years ago to no ill effect for a clotting issue and they are available at the pharmacy here in UK without a prescription. I'm using half the recommended dose though as I am cautious! Did they lighten all your skin or just the melasma? The studies infer you should use it alongside other methods rather than on its own so I've kept up my regimen. It's simply meant to speed things up rather than be a standalone solution. I only intend to take them for a few months x
 
#21 ·
I was told to use it just on the melasma spots, so I didn't see any lightning off other areas, as i applied only to the dark areas. But again, I only used it for less than 6 months.
I really hope it works for you. Keep us posted. xx
 
#23 ·
Hi all, Quick update as promised. I do believe this is working, ladies! It's been almost 2weeks now and I'm almost at the stage where I feel I could go without makeup except for tinted moisturiser! I had heard that the tranexamic acid simply sped up the effects of any regimen already in place, so I will tell you what I have been doing: Morning/evening: tumeric glycerine soap to cleanse face using a wash cloth in circular motions; Morning: bio oil (topical) 1000ml evening primrose oil 1000ml vitamin c Uvistat 50+ sunscreen Half of a 250ml tablet of tranexamic acid. Evening: tumeric soap to cleanse face; Pure organic rosehip oil (topical) 1000 vitamin c Other half of the 250ml tranexamic acid tablet. I have also been taking acidophilus 10 to counteract any candida as I do suffer from thrush frequently. This seems to have made a lot of difference. Hope this helps somebody, the change has been rather dramatic. Two weeks ago I had a full on hyperpigmented upper lip moustache and melasma/ pigmentation on forehead and cheeks which was obvious to anyone who looked at me. I can only hope this works long term! Will be coming off the tranexamic acid soon but will continue with the rest of my regimen x
 
#26 ·
Hi poppy, I am in the uk and tranexamic acid can be bought without prescription in the pharmacy. This is only a recent development though, until a year or so ago the doctor would have to prescribe them. I believe there is an area of dermal pigmentation to the left of my 'moustache' which has responded, a bit more slowly, to this regimen. How can I upload from photo bucket? X
 
This is an older thread, you may not receive a response, and could be reviving an old thread. Please consider creating a new thread.
Top