Published 19 August 2026 · Reviewed by Dr Sin Yong
Most people arrive asking for pico laser by name. Very few arrive knowing what kind of pigment they have — and that second question decides almost everything about whether the first one is the right request.
It is not a brand, a protocol or a category of treatment. It is a unit of time.
A picosecond laser delivers its energy in pulses of around 10−12 seconds — about a thousand times shorter than the nanosecond pulses of the Q-switched lasers that preceded it. That single specification is the whole argument for the technology, and everything else follows from it.
When energy arrives that quickly, the pigment particle absorbing it has no time to shed heat into the tissue around it. The effect becomes predominantly photomechanical: the particle is shattered by a pressure wave rather than cooked. Less heat spreading outward means less inflammation in the surrounding skin — and in Fitzpatrick III to V skin, inflammation is precisely what produces the post-inflammatory hyperpigmentation that patients came in to avoid.
That is the case for picosecond technology in this population, stated properly. It is a difference in how energy is delivered, not a promise about what will happen to your face.
“A pico laser breaks up pigment that is already there. It does nothing about the reason your skin made it — which is why melasma comes back and a sun spot usually does not.”
Dr Sin YongOn what the technology does and does not reach
Pigment is not one thing sitting at one depth, so a single wavelength cannot be correct for all of it.
532 nm is absorbed strongly by melanin and does not travel far. It is directed at superficial epidermal pigment — solar lentigines, freckles, the discrete well-defined marks that accumulate with sun exposure.
1064 nm penetrates considerably further and is absorbed far less by epidermal melanin on the way down. That combination is what makes it the more conservative choice in darker skin: less of the energy is intercepted by the surface, so less heat is deposited where it would cause trouble.
785 nm sits between them, and is the wavelength on the DEKA platform used in Dr Sin Yong’s T2 Frax Radiance protocol.
A fractional delivery mode changes the picture again. Passing the beam through a diffractive optic concentrates energy into discrete high-fluence zones, producing laser-induced optical breakdown — small areas of plasma formation within the epidermis and dermis, surrounded by untreated tissue. That is the mode used when the target is texture and dermal remodelling rather than pigment clearance alone.
Almost everything written about pico laser treats “pigmentation” as a single problem. Clinically it is at least three, and they behave differently.
Solar lentigines are discrete, well-defined, and driven by cumulative ultraviolet exposure. Post-inflammatory hyperpigmentation follows acne, injury or over-aggressive treatment, and fades on its own timeline. Melasma is a chronic condition with hormonal, vascular and ultraviolet drivers, symmetrical distribution and an indistinct border — and none of those drivers is affected by any laser.
This is why melasma so often disappoints. The pigment can be reduced; the mechanism producing it continues. Worse, melasma is genuinely provoked by heat and by over-treatment, so an aggressive approach that works well on a sun spot can leave melasma darker than it started. Where laser has a role in melasma, it is a conservative one within a longer plan built around photoprotection and topical therapy. Our pigmentation guide sets out how the three are distinguished.
People search for these, so it is worth answering directly rather than leaving the absence unexplained.
Under Singapore’s Healthcare Services Act, before-and-after imagery in advertising for licensable healthcare services is prohibited. There is no consent form or disclaimer that permits it, and after-only images fall under the same rule. This is not a stylistic decision by this clinic and it is not evidence that there is nothing to show — it applies identically to every licensed clinic in Singapore, and a site displaying such images is not demonstrating better results, only weaker compliance.
What can be discussed is your own skin, in person, where the pigment can actually be examined under appropriate lighting.
Prices for licensable healthcare services cannot be advertised in Singapore, including as ranges or as “from” figures. What can be set out is what the cost actually depends on.
The factors are the area being treated, what the assessment finds the pigment to be, whether one wavelength or a combination is indicated, whether a fractional mode is being used for texture alongside pigment clearance, and how the plan is staged over time. A single lentigo on a cheek and diffuse melasma across both malar regions are not comparable pieces of work. Cost is set out in full at consultation, once there is something specific to cost.
A picosecond laser is a well-evidenced tool with a real mechanistic advantage in darker skin. It is also frequently asked for by name by patients whose pigment would respond better to something else, or whose pigment will return regardless because its driver was never a target.
The useful consultation establishes what the pigment is before it establishes which device to point at it. Dr Sin Yong — MBBS (NUS), MRCS (Edinburgh), MSc Aesthetic Medicine (London), MSc Practical Dermatology (Cardiff) — assesses pigment personally at Orchard Road, and will say plainly where laser is not the answer.
Picosecond lasers are used routinely in Fitzpatrick III to V skin, which covers most patients in Singapore, but the wavelength and the energy have to be chosen for the skin type rather than applied from a fixed setting. Higher melanin content in the epidermis means more of the incoming energy is absorbed before it reaches the target, which raises the risk of post-inflammatory hyperpigmentation if the settings are too aggressive. This is an assessment question, not a device question.
Pulse duration. A Q-switched laser delivers its energy over nanoseconds; a picosecond laser delivers it roughly a thousand times faster. The shorter the pulse, the more the effect on the pigment particle is photomechanical rather than photothermal, so the particle is fragmented with less heat spreading into the surrounding tissue. Less collateral heat matters most in darker skin, where heat is what drives post-inflammatory pigmentation.
No. Melasma is a chronic condition driven by hormonal, vascular and ultraviolet factors, and no laser addresses any of those. A picosecond laser can reduce the visible pigment, but the mechanism that produced it continues. Melasma is managed over time with photoprotection, topical and sometimes oral therapy, with laser as one component chosen carefully, because over-treatment reliably makes melasma worse.
The commonest reasons are that the pigment being treated is not the type the laser was chosen for, that the diagnosis is melasma rather than lentigines, or that dermal pigment sits deeper than the wavelength being used reaches. Sun exposure between visits is another: ultraviolet stimulates new melanin faster than any device clears the old. If a course has produced nothing, the useful step is a re-examination of what the pigment actually is, not more of the same setting.
Most people describe a rapid snapping sensation. Topical anaesthetic is applied beforehand where the area or the setting calls for it. Tolerance varies considerably between individuals and between areas of the face, and it is discussed before treatment rather than assumed.
It depends on where the pigment sits. 532 nm is strongly absorbed by melanin and is directed at superficial pigment such as solar lentigines. 1064 nm penetrates further and is absorbed less by epidermal melanin, which makes it the more conservative choice in darker skin and for deeper pigment. 785 nm sits between the two. Which applies is decided by examination.
Elective laser treatment is generally deferred during pregnancy. Melasma in particular is often hormonally driven in pregnancy and frequently settles after delivery, so treating it during that period is both less predictable and unnecessary. Tell Dr Sin Yong if you are pregnant, planning pregnancy or breastfeeding.
Direct sun exposure is the significant one, because ultraviolet drives new pigment production in skin that has just been treated. Broad-spectrum sun protection is used daily regardless of weather, since ultraviolet in Singapore is high year-round. Aggressive exfoliation and high-strength actives are set aside until the skin has settled, and specific aftercare is given for the area treated.
Wu DC, Goldman MP, Wat H, Chan HHL. A Systematic Review of Picosecond Laser in Dermatology: Evidence and Recommendations. Lasers in Surgery and Medicine 2021;53(1):9–49. source
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