title: Effects of neodymium-yttrium-aluminum garnet (Nd:YAG) pulsed high-intensity laser therapy on full thickness wound healing in an experimental animal model.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  Wound healing can be aided by the use of low- and medium-intensity lasers. The use of pulsed neodymium-doped yttrium aluminum garnet (Nd:YAG) high-intensity laser therapy (HILT) with a 1064-nm wavelength laser provides deeper and more efficient penetration into tissue as it is being less absorbed by chromophores in tissue, e.g., hemoglobin, melanin, and water, thereby enhancing the wound-healing process. In this study, we examined the effect of HILT on wound healing with a Q-switched pulsed Nd:YAG laser in an animal model.
  
  
  METHODS
  Sixty SKH1 hairless male mice (seven weeks old) were randomly divided into four groups according to the amount of laser fluence: control, group 1 (0.8 J/cm2), group 2 (1.6 J/cm2), and group 3 (2.0 J/cm2). Laser treatment was provided to groups 1, 2, and 3 with a 1064-nm Q-switched Nd:YAG laser. Histological analysis was performed with hematoxylin and eosin staining, Masson's Trichrome staining, and Ki-67 staining.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Statistically significant increases in the accumulation of collagen fibers, thickness of granulation tissue, and numbers of fibroblasts were observed in group 2 (treated with 1.6 J/cm2) as compared with the control (no laser treatment), group 1 (treated with 0.8 J/cm2), and group 3 (treated with 2.0 J/cm2).
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Nd:YAG HILT stimulated fibroblast proliferation and increased extracellular matrix production. We expect that this therapy could accelerate the wound-healing process.
authors.affiliation: a Department of Plastic Surgery , Ewha Womans University Mokdong Hospital , Seoul , Korea.
authors.forename: Seung Eun
authors.initials: SE
authors.lastname: Hong
authors.affiliation: a Department of Plastic Surgery , Ewha Womans University Mokdong Hospital , Seoul , Korea.
authors.forename: Mi Ki
authors.initials: MK
authors.lastname: Hong
authors.affiliation: a Department of Plastic Surgery , Ewha Womans University Mokdong Hospital , Seoul , Korea.
authors.forename: So Ra
authors.initials: SR
authors.lastname: Kang
authors.affiliation: a Department of Plastic Surgery , Ewha Womans University Mokdong Hospital , Seoul , Korea.
authors.forename: Bo
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Young Park
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D003094:Collagen / Q000528:radiation effects; D005347:Fibroblasts / Q000528:radiation effects; D006097:Granulation Tissue / Q000528:radiation effects; D053844:Lasers, Solid-State / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D028022:Low-Level Light Therapy / Q000379:methods*; D008297:Male; D051379:Mice; D008812:Mice, Hairless; D023421:Models, Animal; D011897:Random Allocation; D014945:Wound Healing / Q000528:radiation effects*
chemical_list: D003094:Collagen
keywords: Granulation tissue; laser therapy; wound healing