Treatment of periorbital and perioral wrinkles with fractional er:yag laser: what are the effects of age, smoking and glogau stage?

Özkoca, D; Aşkın, Ö; Engin, B

BACKGROUND Dynamic and static wrinkling is observed on the facial skin as a result of aging. Previously, it was showed that fractional Er:YAG laser was effective in the treatment of facial wrinkles. AIMS The aims of this study are to determine the effects of age, Glogau stage and smoking status on the treatment efficacy of fractional Er:YAG laser; and to compare the success of laser treatment on periorbital wrinkleswith perioral wrinkles. MATERIAL/METHOD Periorbital and perioral wrinkles of the same patient were treated with fractional Er:YAG laser (2940 nm) for 4 sessions with monthly intervals. Treatment parameters were afluence of 1.5J, a spot size of 7 mm and a frequency of 5 Hz. Treatment efficacy was evaluated by a blinded physician evaluation scale and patient satisfaction scale 2 months after the final treatment session. RESULTS Fifteen patients completed the study. The mean age of the patients was 42.8 years. The blinded physician evaluation of the improvement in the periorbital wrinkles decreased (p= 0.034) and the patient satisfaction in perioral wrinkles decreased (p=0.049) with increasing age. The relationship between smoking and patient satisfaction in the treatment of periorbital wrinkles was also statistically significant (p=0.014). No difference in terms of treatment efficacy was found between periorbital and perioral regions. CONCLUSION Fractional Er:YAG laser (2940 nm) is equally successful in the treatment of periorbital and perioral wrinkles. The treatment success decreases with smoking and increasing age.