Premium
Free electron laser infrared wavelength specificity for cutaneous contraction
Author(s) -
Ellis Darrel L.,
Weisberg Noah K.,
Chen June S.,
Stricklin George P.,
Reinisch Lou
Publication year - 1999
Publication title -
lasers in surgery and medicine
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.888
H-Index - 112
eISSN - 1096-9101
pISSN - 0196-8092
DOI - 10.1002/(sici)1096-9101(1999)25:1<1::aid-lsm1>3.0.co;2-w
Subject(s) - laser , wavelength , contraction (grammar) , chemistry , infrared , electron microscope , biophysics , optics , materials science , optoelectronics , medicine , biology , physics
Background and Objective Short pulsed and scanned CO 2 lasers that target water molecules are currently used for cutaneous resurfacing. These CO 2 resurfacing lasers produce acute cutaneous contraction, which can be quantitated as a measure of the laser's effect. We postulated that targeting the vibrational and rotational modes of proteins with specific infrared laser wavelengths might be more effective at inducing cutaneous contraction than the CO 2 resurfacing lasers. Study Design/Materials and Methods The Vanderbilt University Free Electron Laser (FEL) was used at wavelengths between 6.0–8.6 μm. The cutaneous contraction and histologic thermal damage observed was compared to that seen with a scanned CO 2 resurfacing laser. Results Peaks of cutaneous contraction at 7.2–7.4 and 7.6–7.7 μm were found, which were three‐fold more efficient at producing cutaneous contraction than the 10.6 μm CO 2 laser. The 7.2 μm wavelength is associated with the CH bend of C−CH 3 , 7.4 μm to the CH bend of O=C−CH 3 , 7.6 μm to the C−C−C stretch, and 7.7 μm to the amide III (C−N−H) absorption band for proteins. Using light microscopy, an approximately 40 μm denaturation zone of dermal collagen was found at all FEL wavelengths tested, regardless of the effectiveness of cutaneous contraction. Conclusion The mechanism of action of these infrared wavelengths on cutaneous contraction is unknown, but appears to be independent of the amount of collagen denatured as observed by light microscopy. Infrared lasers such as the FEL that target vibrational and rotational modes of proteins therefore hold promise for cutaneous application at selected wavelengths. Lasers Surg. Med. 25:1–7, 1999. © 1999 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.