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Effectiveness of Simultaneous Intense Pulsed Light and Ablative Fractional CO2 Laser Therapy in the Treatment of Hypertrophic Burn Scars
Steffi Sharma, MD
Djoni Elkady, BS, BA
Brandon Larson, MD
Lou Richard, MD
Anjay Khandelwal, MD
Summa Health
2024-01-08
Presenter: Steffi Sharma, MD
Affidavit:
This study above was discussed with me. I affirm that the above contributions were made by Steffi Sharma with regards to this study being submitted. She has my full support and approval for the submission.
Director Name: Dr. Ananth Murthy
Author Category: Fellow Plastic Surgery
Presentation Category: Clinical
Abstract Category: General Reconstruction
Introduction:
Intense Pulsed Light (IPL) and Ablative Fractional CO2 Lasers (AFCL) have shown promise in scar treatment by targeting vascular structures and promoting collagen production. While IPL-AFCL has been used in managing hypertrophic scarring in various dermatological conditions, limited data exist for burn scar treatment. Our study assessed the efficacy of simultaneous IPL-AFCL therapy on hypertrophic burn scars using the Modified Vancouver Scar Scale (MVSS). To our knowledge, this is the first reported case series of simultaneous laser treatment in the treatment of hypertrophic burn scars.
Methods:
In this retrospective study (April 2021 to July 2023) data from patients receiving at least two IPL-AFCL treatments were analyzed. Demographics, burn details, and complications were collected. Linear regression assessed the impact of time from burn to first treatment on MVSS scores. Unpaired t-tests compared pre/post-MVSS scores for partial-thickness (PT) and full-thickness (FT) burns, and paired t-tests evaluated pre/post-treatment MVSS score differences after IPL-AFCL treatment.
Results:
Our study included 33 patients. The mean pre-MVSS score was 12.09 ± 2.77, and post-MVSS score was 6.24 ± 2.96. IPL-AFCL significantly reduced MVSS scores by a mean of 5.85 ± 0.43 (p<0.0001) with an average of 3.70 ± 1.69 IPL-AFCL treatments per patient. Significant reductions were also observed in pigmentation (p=0.001), vascularity, pliability, height, pain, and pruritus (p<0.0001).
Conclusion:
Our study demonstrated that IPL-AFCL treatment effectively improved hypertrophic burn scars. MVSS scores did not significantly differ between PT and FT burns, but the time from the initial burn to the first treatment significantly influenced pre-MVSS scores.
