Nevus of Ota: Combination Treatment with Q-Switched neodymium-doped yttrium aluminum garnet laser and fractional CO2 laser

Abstract

Nevus of Ota is a facial dermal melanocytic hamartoma occurring more commonly in Asians. The mainstay of treatment is 1064-nm Q-Switched neodymium-doped yttrium aluminum garnet (Nd:YAG) laser, which has shown variable results in pigmented skin. The aim of this study was to determine whether Q-Switched Nd:YAG laser treatment combined with fractional CO2 laser is more efficacious than Q-Switched Nd:YAG laser alone. This was a prospective study with 81 patients. The patients were randomly divided into two groups. Group 1 received 1064-nm Q-Switched Nd:YAG laser alone and group 2 in addition received a fractional CO2 laser as well. Both groups received six sittings at monthly intervals. The treatment response was documented with physician global assessment (PGA) and patient’s treatment satisfaction on Wong–Baker Facial Pain Scale (WBFPS). Dermoscopic evaluation was done to see subsurface pigment clearance. In the combination group, 25% of patients had more than 50% improvement as compared with 5.71% in group 1. To achieve a mean PGA score of 1.4, it took six sessions for group 1 versus only four for group 2. Dermoscopic evaluation showed faster pigment clearance in the combination group. Combining two lasers shows statistically significant faster and greater degree of improvement as compared with Q-Switched Nd:YAG laser monotherapy in nevus of Ota.