title: Pulsed dye laser and topical timolol gel versus pulse dye laser in treatment of infantile hemangioma: A double-blind randomized controlled trial.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Infantile hemangioma (IH) is the most common tumor during infancy that usually appears as macular and gradually becomes a plaque or tumor. Approximately, 20% of all IH cases results in adverse effects and the Pulsed dye laser (PDL) 585 nm is a vascular laser leading to selective the micro vascular damage. Results of studies on non-selective B-blockers (e.g., timolol) indicate their effectiveness in preventing hemangioma growth. The aim of this study is a comparison of PDL plus timolol and PDL in the treatment of IH.
  
  
  METHODS
  This double-blind study was carried out on 30 infants (1-12 months old) and the patients were divided into two groups. Group A was treated with the four sessions PDL and the timolol gel 0.05% and Group B with PDL.
  
  
  RESULTS
  There were no differences in the mean age of patients for the diagnosis of hemangioma (Group A: 32.69 ± 24.64 days, Group B: 25.69 ± 21.16 days, P = 0.39) and the mean age at the start of the treatment (Group A: 148.125 ± 85.88 days, Group B: 146.25 ± 60.87 days, P = 0.94). There were a statistical difference in the mean of lesion size reduction (Group A: 17.62 ± 6.97 cm and Group B: 12 ± 5.71 cm, P = 0.018), mean percentage change in size mean (Group A: 71079 ± 23.41% and Group B: 54.59 ± 25.46%, P = 0.050) visual analog scale (Group A: 7.19 ± 1.51, Group B: 5.62 ± 1.78, P = 0.012) after treatment. There was no correlation between the time of beginning the treatment and the results (P = 0.857).
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Application of timolol with PDL is accompanied by the highest efficacy, cost benefits and the short time of treatment.
authors.affiliation: Department of Dermatology, Tehran University of Medical Sciences, Isfahan, Iran; Skin Diseases and Leishmaniasis Research Center, Tehran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran; Isfahan University of Medical Sciences, Isfahan, Iran.
authors.forename: Ali
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Asilian
authors.affiliation: Department of Dermatology, Tehran University of Medical Sciences, Isfahan, Iran; Isfahan University of Medical Sciences, Isfahan, Iran.
authors.forename: Fatemeh
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Mokhtari
authors.affiliation: Department of Dermatology, Tehran University of Medical Sciences, Isfahan, Iran; Isfahan University of Medical Sciences, Isfahan, Iran; School of Medicine, Tehran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran.
authors.forename: Atefeh Sadat
authors.initials: AS
authors.lastname: Kamali
authors.affiliation: Department of Dermatology, Tehran University of Medical Sciences, Isfahan, Iran; Isfahan University of Medical Sciences, Isfahan, Iran.
authors.forename: Bahareh
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Abtahi-Naeini
authors.affiliation: Skin Diseases and Leishmaniasis Research Center, Tehran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran; Skin and Stem Cell Research Center, Tehran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran.
authors.forename: Mohammad Ali
authors.initials: MA
authors.lastname: Nilforoushzadeh
authors.affiliation: Isfahan University of Medical Sciences, Isfahan, Iran; Department of Epidemiology and Biostatistics, School of Public Health, Isfahan, Iran.
authors.forename: Shayan
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Mostafaie
keywords: Infantile hemangioma; Pulsed dye laser; timolol