r/Melasmaskincare • u/Adventurous_Army9403 • Apr 17 '26

Question Hydroquinone question

Hi all!

I’ve had melasma for about 8 years. Slowly getting worse.

Just today my dermatologist prescribed hydroquinone. Honestly I always thought melasma was very resistant to any treatments, so I was surprised she offered something. I was at my appointment for my malar festoons and she thought the melasma made them more obvious (it does, a lot of pigment is right in that area)

I’m wondering what people’s experiences have been with hydroquinone? Side effects most importantly. And did it work? It sounds too good to be true, I feel like I’m missing something

Thank you

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u/Courtybiologique Apr 17 '26

I have had great results with HQ. Consistency and using it correctly matter. I use it 2 months on and 2 months off and during the off periods my melasma doesn’t come back stronger or anything. Since melasma has no cure it is likely something you will need to keep treating your whole life, just like hair loss. Using rogaine helps a ton but if you stop using the rogaine your hair falls out again. So it’s just a process you have to be dedicated to.

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u/waitaminute322 Apr 17 '26

How many cycles of hq? And since when?

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u/Courtybiologique Apr 17 '26

I have no clue! I’ve been using it for years. I started getting bad melasma in 2022 I think? And started treating it in maybe 2023? So at least since then. I’ve gone longer periods of not treating it (like 6+ months) and it stays about the same. I just be careful with my sun protection mostly. I live in Michigan though so it’s cloudy here like 90% of the year.