Abstract:

Objective To study the therapeutic effect of variable pulsed Nd:YAG laser and intense pulsed light （IPL） on port wine stain（PWS） in an animal model. Methods The combs of 38 Leghorn chickens served as the animal model of PWS, which were randomly classified into 4 groups: blank control group receiving no irradiation, Nd:YAG group receiving Nd:YAG laser irradiation for 2 sessions, IPL group receiving IPL irradiation for 2 sessions, and combination group receiving 1 session of Nd:YAG laser irradiation followed by 1 session of IPL irradiation 45 days later. One week after the final irradiation, the morphology of combs was observed, and tissue specimens were resected from the combs for the analysis of histological changes and blood vessel density. The data were assessed by using one-way ANOVA. Results After 2 sessions of irradiation, the color of comb skin was lightened, and light microscopy showed the thickening of vascular layers in the dermis, blockage of blood vessels and decrease in the number of blood vessels. The count of blood vessels per high power field （× 400） was significantly lower in the Nd:YAG group （17.92 ± 3.63）, IPL group （8.08 ± 1.56） and combination group （7.08 ± 1.31） than in the control group （37.08 ± 3.97, all P < 0.01）, but was similar between the combination group and IPL group （P > 0.01）, and higher in the Nd:YAG group than in the combination group （P < 0.01）. Conclusions Variable pulsed Nd:YAG laser and IPL, alone or in combination, can be used in the treatment of PWS, however, the effect of IPL alone or in combination with Nd:YAG seems superior to that of Nd:YAG laser alone.

Key words: IPL