Angiokeratoma circumscriptum naeviforme: successful treatment with carbon-dioxide laser vaporization.

BACKGROUND: Angiokeratoma circumscriptum naeviforme (ACN) is an unusual type of localized angiokeratoma that occurs more frequently in females and is usually located on the buttocks or thighs, showing a unilateral distribution. ACN usually causes large lesions, which may require laser ablation because they often are too extensive to perform surgical excision. Carbon-dioxide laser is a known alternative for treating angiokeratomas.

OBJECTIVE: Report of two cases of ACN treated with carbon-dioxide laser vaporization.

PATIENTS AND METHODS: A 28-year-old woman with a hyperkeratotic, violaceus plaque on her left buttock and a 24-year-old woman with a similar lesion on her right buttock were treated with a carbon-dioxide laser. Two laser passes were performed on each lesion within a single session.

RESULTS: A successful cosmetic aspect of treated areas was obtained, with minimal pigmentary or textural changes. After a 2-year follow-up in the first patient and a 6-month follow-up in the second patient, no recurrence of the lesions was observed.

CONCLUSIONS: Our results, obtaining relevant cosmetic improvement after a few sessions of treatment, with low morbidity and minimal secondary effects, suggest that continuous-wave carbon-dioxide laser vaporization is a safe and effective treatment for ACN.