Background: The objective of this study was to compare the clinical effects of a long-pulse-width 1064-nm Nd:YAG laser-assisted ear correction model and a simple ear correction model in the treatment of congenital auricular deformities in children older than 6 weeks.
Methods: A total of 129 children (179 ears) with congenital auricular deformities who were older than 2 months were included. Among them, 84 (119 ears) were treated with the ear correction model after long-pulse-width 1064-nm Nd:YAG laser irradiation (observation group) and 45 (60 ears) were treated with the ear correction model only (control group). The affected ears of the two groups were measured, the correction time was calculated, and the patients' family members filled in the satisfaction questionnaire before and after the treatment.
Results: The level of satisfaction of both groups improved after the treatment. The satisfaction level of the observation group was higher than that of the control group. Fewer days of correction were observed in the observation group than in the control group ( p < 0.05). The measurements of the affected ears in the two groups were significantly different after treatment. The difference after treatment of each measurement in the observation group was higher than in the control group. The therapeutic effect of the observation group was significantly better than that of the control group and the differences were statistically significant.
Conclusion: Long-pulse-width 1064-nm Nd:YAG laser combined with the ear correction model can improve the success rate of correction of congenital auricular deformities in over-aged ears.
Clinical question/level of evidence: Therapeutic, II.
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