Background:The adjunctive use of 5-aminolevulinic acid (5-ALA) with intense pulsed-light (IPL) treatments has been suggested to increase the benefit of IPL for photoaging; however, to our knowledge, no controlled trials have been performed.Design: A prospective, randomized, controlled, splitface study was designed. Twenty subjects participated in a series of 3 split-face treatments 3 weeks apart in which half of the face was pretreated with 5-ALA followed by IPL treatment while the other half was treated with IPL alone. Two additional full-face treatments (with IPL alone) were then delivered 3 weeks apart. Assessment of global photodamage, fine lines, mottled pigmentation, tactile roughness, and sallowness (on a scale of 0-4) was performed by a blinded investigator before each treatment and 4 weeks after the final treatment. Patients also completed an assessment at the conclusion of the study comparing their results with pretreatment photographs.Results: All 20 volunteers completed the study. Pretreatment with 5-ALA resulted in more improvement in the global score for photoaging (16 [80%] subjects vs 9 [45%] subjects; P = .008) and mottled pigmentation (19 [95%] subjects vs 12 [60%] subjects; P= .008) than IPL
Both the 595-nm and the 532-nm pulsed lasers are highly effective in the treatment of facial telangiectasia and redness. The 532-nm KTP laser appears to be more effective but causes more swelling and erythema.
Nonablative treatment with the 1,320 nm Nd:YAG laser induced significant patient-reported improvement in both acne scarring and photoaging. The majority of patients reported satisfaction with the degree of improvement.
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