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Deep coagulation of dermal collagen with repetitive Er:YAG laser irradiation
Author(s) -
Majaron Boris,
Srinivas Shyam M.,
Huang Huaien L.,
Nelson J. Stuart
Publication year - 2000
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(2000)26:2<215::aid-lsm13>3.0.co;2-o
Subject(s) - laser , er:yag laser , irradiation , fluence , materials science , biomedical engineering , dermis , dermoepidermal junction , in vivo , dermatology , optics , anatomy , medicine , biology , physics , microbiology and biotechnology , nuclear physics
Background and Objective Er:YAG lasers are known to effectively ablate human skin with minimal thermal damage to subjacent dermal tissue. We have investigated whether deep coagulation of dermal collagen, similar to that observed with the CO 2 laser, could be achieved with repetitive Er:YAG laser exposures. Study Design/Materials and Methods Skin on the back of a Sprague‐Dawley rat in vivo was irradiated with sequences of 1–10 Er:YAG laser pulses at a repetition rate of 10 or 33 Hz and single‐pulse fluences from 0.8 to 1.4 J/cm 2 . The resulting lesions were biopsied within 1 hour after laser exposure, and the histologic sections were examined by using optical microscopy. Results The depth of dermal collagen denaturation increases dramatically when 3–10 low‐fluence Er:YAG laser pulses are stacked at a repetition rate of 10 or 33 Hz. Conclusion Coagulation of dermal collagen deeper than 200 μm below the epidermal‐dermal junction is feasible by using the appropriate settings of a repetitive Er:YAG laser. Lasers Surg. Med. 26:215–222, 2000. © 2000 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.