A fractional 2940 nm short-pulsed, erbium-doped yttrium aluminium garnet laser is effective and minimally invasive for the treatment of photodamaged skin in Asians.
BACKGROUND
Although ablative fractional laser for the facial photodamaged skin was effective and safe, there have been only limited reports regarding the efficacy and safety of fractional Er:YAG laser treatments for photodamaged facial skin in Asians.


OBJECTIVE
Our objective was to assess the efficacy and safety of the Er:YAG laser (2940 nm) using the ''ablative'' fractional resurfacing mode to treat photodamaged facial skin.


METHODS
A total of 29 Korean patients were treated for photodamaged facial skin using a fractional Er:YAG laser. The number of treatments was mean 2.3 sessions at two-week intervals. Independent investigators assessed the efficacy using standardized photographs. The patients' satisfaction rate was also evaluated.


RESULTS
For dyspigmentation, 62.5% of the treated patients showed improvement greater than 26%. Regarding wrinkles, 50% of the treated patients showed improvement greater than 26%. All patients showed various degrees of improvement in skin laxity. Assessing the overall features, 62.5% of the study subjects showed improvement greater than 26%, and most of them (91.7%) reported that their subjective satisfaction rate was above 'slight satisfaction'. Downtime accounted for approximately one week in most patients.


CONCLUSIONS
A fractional Er:YAG laser can deliver an effective and minimally invasive treatment for photodamaged facial skin in Asians.
Department of Dermatology, Asan Medical Center, University of Ulsan College of Medicine, Seoul, Korea.
Hyung Min
HM
Lee
Sik
S
Haw
Jeong Eun
JE
Kim
Chong Hyun
CH
Won
Mi Woo
MW
Lee
Jee Ho
JH
Choi
Sung Eun
SE
Chang
Youn Jin
YJ
Kim
Boncheol L
BL
Goo
D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D044466:Asian People; D003357:Cosmetic Techniques / Q000009:adverse effects; D004890:Erythema / Q000209:etiology; D005145:Face; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D053844:Lasers, Solid-State / Q000009:adverse effects / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D010146:Pain / Q000209:etiology; D017060:Patient Satisfaction; D010859:Pigmentation Disorders / Q000601:surgery; D012060:Rejuvenation; D056910:Republic of Korea; D015595:Skin Aging / Q000208:ethnology*