Use of a fractional 1570-nm diode laser scanner for non-ablative face and neck rejuvenation.

BACKGROUND: The use of non-ablative fractionated lasers for skin rejuvenation has been proven to be effective in improving skin texture, and has become popular due to minimal wounding, significantly shorter recovery times and decreased adverse effects.

OBJECTIVE: To retrospectively analyze improvement in skin texture in healthy women aged over 18 years with Fitzpatrick skin types II-IV.

METHODS: Participants received three facial and/or neck treatments with the 1570-nm fractional scanning diode laser at 1-month intervals. Three months after the last treatment session two blinded evaluators assessed skin improvement using before and after photos. Pain and patient satisfaction were recorded.

RESULTS: Sixteen women with a mean age of 45.4 ± 4.1 years (range 35-50 years) and skin type II-IV were included in the analysis. All 16 participants received facial treatments and seven (43.8%) also received neck treatments. Three months follow-up evaluation showed that the majority of participants had a visible change in the treated areas. Mean pain score was low and decreased with each treatment session.

CONCLUSION: Skin treatment using fractional scanning 1570-nm diode laser improves skin laxity in women with skin types II-IV. Larger studies are warranted to further clarify the efficacy and safety of this modality.