Pulsed dye laser treatment of port-wine stains in infancy without the need for general anesthesia

A retrospective review of nearly 200 infants who were treated for port-wine stains with a Vbeam Perfecta. The majority of patients showed significant improvement without scarring or pigmentary change.

PubMed Reference: Jeon H, Bernstein LJ, Belkin DA, Ghalili S, Geronemus RG. JAMA Dermatol. 2019 Mar 13.

Study Details:

• Retrospective review of 197 infants (73 boys, 124 girls), mean age of first treatment 3.38 months (range, 5-355 days) with Fitzpatrick skin types I -VI, treated for port-wine stains.
• Vbeam Perfecta (595-nm PDL) parameters (determined by PWS location): spot size 10 to 12 mm, fluence 6.5 to 9.0 J/cm² and pulse duration of 0.45 to 1.5 ms.
• Mean number of treatments was 9.8 (range 2-23, mean interval of 37.29 days). Topical or general anesthesia was not administered.
• Independent grading by 4 physicians of clinical photography (before and 1 year after the initial treatment), using a 5-point scale: poor (0%-25%), fair (26%-50%), good (51%-75%), excellent (76%-99%), and complete (100%) clearance.

Study Results:

• 67% of all patients showed >75 to 100% improvement.
• Mean grade for all patients was 3.65±1.26, corresponding to excellent clearance.
• None of the patients experienced scarring or permanent pigmentary change.
• All of the patients with darker skin types (IV - VI) did well, without any significant complications.