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Nd:YAG in the Successful Treatment of Acne Vulgaris

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eMediNexus    27 January 2022

A 28-year-old man came with painful, inflamed nodular lesions as well as pustules located on the face, neck and trunk. He had the acne developed at the age of 14 years. The patient was diagnosed as having severe acne.

Acne vulgaris (AV) is a chronic inflammatory disease with multifactorial etiology and a significant psychological disability. Inflammation is a fundamental process in the early and late stage of acne. Physical symptoms of AV include soreness, itching and pain, was treated in Laser Aesthetics Clinic with Nd:YAG laser. Treatment was well-tolerated by the patient. Significant clearance of acne as well as acne scar improvement with no side effect was observed after the laser treatment.

Laser therapies using various wavelengths were considered in response to a need of alternative treatment options. The laser treatments are based on two mechanisms of action. Medical devices with blue to red light as well as intensive pulsed light (IPL) destroy Propionibacterium acnes by absorption of endogenous porphyrins produced by P. acnes resulting in a cytotoxic effect on the bacteria.

Several near-infrared lasers such as 1320 nm, 1450 nm as well as 1540 nm lasers have been studied for AV treatment. An additional advantage of using infrared lasers for acne treatment is their potential to improve scars developed as a result of inflammatory AV.

While there are numerous studies indicating the effective use of 1064 nm Nd:YAG lasers for the acne scar treatment, there is very little known about efficacy against acne infection. Case reports by Ballin and Winstanley reported an improvement of AV with low level 1064 nm Nd:YAG. Another study performed by Chun et al reported improvement of severe pustular and cystic acne an using combination of topical carbon lotion and Qswitched 1064 nm Nd:YAG treatment.

The great potential of long-pulsed 1064 Nd:YAG laser light is derived from its capability to penetrate deep into the skin to thermally and selectively destroy overactive sebaceous glands and reduce acne inflammation.

A single session was sufficient to treat mild-to-moderate AV. The reduction of acne scars was also observed, which represents additional advantage of this treatment.

In a few months follow-up, there was no reoccurrence of acne. Acne treatment with long-pulsed 1064 nm Nd:YAG is a safe, effective and well-tolerated treatment with long-term results and no side effects reported.

Suggested Reading

  1. Ballin JS, Uebelhoer NS. The use of the low-fluence 1064 nm Nd:YAG laser in a female with contraindications to systemic anti-acne therapy. J Drugs Dermatol. 2009;8(11):1025-6.
  2. Winstanley DA, Uebelhoer NS. Future considerations in cutaneous photomedicine. Semin Cutan Med Surg. 2008;27:301-8.
  3. Chun SI, Calderhead RG. Carbon assisted Q-switched Nd:YAG laser treatment with two different sets of pulse width parameters offers a useful treatment modality for severe inflammatory acne: a case report. Photomed Laser Surg. 2011;29(2):131-5.
  4. Meffert H, Gaunitz K, Gutewort T, et al. Therapy of acne with visible light. Decreased irradiation time by using a blue-light high-energy lamp. Dermatol Monatsschr. 1990;176(10):597-603. 
  5. Sigurdsson V, Knulst AC, van Weelden H. Phototherapy of acne vulgaris with visible light. Dermatology 1997;194(3):256-60.

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