Background: Erbium fractional laser treatment has immense skin rejuvenation effects, but it is associated with side effects such as erythema and pigmentation. Platelet-rich plasma (PRP) can enhance the restorative effects of Erbium fractional laser, but there are few studies on this combined treatment in the Asian population, and no study has examined the effects of adding platelet-poor plasma (PPP) to the combination.
Objective: This study aims to investigate the effects and safety of Erbium fractional laser irradiation combined with autologous PRP and PPP therapy for facial rejuvenation.
Methods: Between January 2010 and June 2016, 158 patients with facial skin aging were treated by Erbium fractional laser irradiation combined with autologous PRP and PPP. After three sessions, patients and experienced physicians evaluated the effectiveness of the treatment.
Results: The symptoms of skin aging, especially skin color, pore expansion, and skin texture, showed obvious improvement after the treatment, according to the evaluation of the patients and the physicians, who reported a total treatment effectiveness rate of 90.51% and 88.61%, respectively. The treatment was well-tolerated by all the participants, and no hyperpigmentation or depigmentation was observed in any of the cases. The reported side effects were edema (1-3 days), erythema (2-4 days), and crusting (3-10 days).
Conclusion: Erbium fractional laser irradiation combined with PRP and PPP application is an effective and safe approach for improving facial skin aging and has minimal side effects. Future investigations on a bigger sample with a longer follow-up period should focus on optimizing the treatment protocol and settings.
Keywords: Erbium fractional laser; facial rejuvenation; platelet-poor plasma (PPP); platelet-rich plasma (PRP); skin aging.
© 2019 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.