Laser, pinhole combination treatment may clear scars

A combination therapy using laser-cision and pinhole method with CO₂ laser may clear hypertrophic burn scars, according to results of a small study.

Researchers with Yonsei Star Skin & Laser Clinic in Seoul, South Korea, reviewed charts from nine patients who had hypertrophic burn scars. The patients, mean age 31.2, were treated with combination laser-cision and pinhole method between January 2007 and December 2012.

Patients received one to three treatment sessions at one-year intervals with laser-cision, and five to eight treatment sessions as two- to three-month intervals with the pinhole method. Compared to baseline, researchers observed a mild-to-moderate improvement in patients (with grades 1-4; mean score, 2.89). A patient satisfaction survey showed a mean improvement score of 3.11.

“Combination laser-cision and pinhole method using a CO₂laser may be a new effective treatment option for patients with hypertrophic burn scars,” study authors concluded.

The findings were published online in Lasers in Surgery and Medicine.