Effectiveness and safety of the 1064 nm long-pulsed Nd: YAG laser for treating pyogenic granuloma children: a retrospective study of 30 patients.

Abstract

Pyogenic Granuloma (PG) is a benign vascular tumor with multiple treatment; current therapies mainly focus on laser therapy but its' use in children was rarely been reported. This retrospective study aimed to analyze the effectiveness and safety of the 1064 nm long-pulsed Nd: YAG laser for treating PG among children attending our Dermatology Laser Clinic to take laser therapy. The researchers collected data of 30 Chinese pediatric PG patients treated with 1064 nm long-pulsed Nd: YAG laser with fluences of 85-130 J/cm² and pulse width of 10-40 and pulse of 1-4 at one-month intervals. Total treatment ranged from one to two sessions. A assessment of clinical efficacy was made by two physicians through measuring the long and short diameters of PG in standard photos to compute the changes in the PG volume. Based on the pretreatment and post-treatment photos, a 5-point grading scale was used for the evaluation of pigment clearance: 5 for complete (95-100%), 4 for excellent (75-94%), 3 for good (50-74%), 2 for fair (25-49%), and 1 for poor (0-24%). Adverse reactions such as bleeding, scar and pigmentation were recorded during the follow-up visit after treatment. Among these patients, 28 recovered after a single treatment, and 2 received two treatments. After the first laser treatment, there was a significant reduction in grading scores(p < 0.0001), accompanied by a notable improvement in physician visual evaluation. There was recurrence-free during 6 months of follow-up in all patients. Only 1 patient was observed with a scar. Post-inflammatory hyperpigmentation after treatment was observed in 2 patients which improved within 3 months. Hypopigmentation was not found after treatment. The 1064 nm long-pulsed Nd: YAG laser is an effective and safe approach for treating PG in children.