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Wound Healing Process After Thermomechanical Skin Ablation
Author(s) -
Kokolakis Georgios,
Grawert Leonie,
Ulrich Martina,
Lademann Juergen,
Zuberbier Torsten,
Hofmann Maja A.
Publication year - 2020
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/lsm.23213
Subject(s) - ablation , medicine , wound healing , hyperpigmentation , edema , surgery , erythema , laser ablation , laser , biomedical engineering , dermatology , optics , physics
Background and Objectives Energy‐based devices have been widely applied for skin ablation. A novel ablation technique based on thermomechanical principles (Tixel © ) has been recently developed. The aim of this study was to examine the wound‐healing process and clinical aspects after thermomechanical skin ablation. Study Design/Materials and Methods Six female participants were treated with Tixel © on healthy skin of the dorsal side of the right forearm in a single session with a 600 µm protrusion and 12 milliseconds pulse. The treated area was examined with confocal laser scanning microscopy on day 1, 2, 7, and 14 after treatment. Clinical symptoms were evaluated at the same time‐points. Results All patients developed erythema and mild edema on the treated areas, which completely disappeared within 14 days. No post‐inflammatory hyperpigmentation or scarring was observed. Thermomechanical skin ablation resulted in the formation of homogeneous micro‐ablation zones. Two weeks after ablation, the honeycomb patterns of the epidermis in all examined layers was thoroughly restored. Thus, wound‐healing was completed. Conclusions Wound healing after thermomechanical skin ablation is much faster compared with other fractionated ablation methods. Treatment intervals of 2–4 weeks could be recommended. Lasers Surg. Med. © 2020 The Authors. Lasers in Surgery and Medicine published by Wiley Periodicals, Inc.