Combination of short-pulsed CO2 laser resurfacing and cultured epidermal sheet autografting in the treatment of vitiligo: a preliminary report.
Cultured epidermal autografting has been employed in a variety of clinical treatments including vitiligo management. In this study, we successfully treated 2 patients with vitiligo using a short-pulsed CO2 laser and by grafting the autologous cultured epidermis. Small pieces of uninvolved skin (2 x 1 cm) were taken for cultivation from a pudendal or axillary area and were expanded into 2 pieces of epidermal sheets 100 cm. Before grafting, the lesions were abraded superficially using a short-pulsed CO2 laser with a computerized pattern generator. After successful grafting, repigmentation was visible within 1 to 2 months. One year after grafting, the skin color was almost the same as that of the surrounding normal skin. Thus, the combination of short-pulsed CO2 laser resurfacing and cultured epidermal grafting is a powerful option for treating an asymmetric and wide vitiliginous lesion.
Toriyama
Kazuhiro
K
Department of Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery, Nagoya University Graduate School of Medicine, Showa-ku, Nagoya 466-8560, Japan. tori@med.nagoya-u.ac.jp
Kamei
Yuzuru
Y
Kazeto
Takao
T
Yasue
Takashi
T
Suga
Yasushi
Y
Inoie
Masukazu
M
Tomita
Yasushi
Y
Torii
Shuhei
S
D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D002245:Carbon Dioxide; D002648:Child; D004817:Epidermis / Q000637:transplantation*; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D053685:Laser Therapy; D012880:Skin Pigmentation; D014182:Transplantation, Autologous; D014820:Vitiligo / Q000601:surgery*
D002245:Carbon Dioxide