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الرحيم الرحمن الله بســــــم

SUDAN UNIVERSITY OF SCIENCES AND TECHNOLOGY

COLLEGE OF POST – GRADUATE STUDIES INSTITUTE OF LASER

 

UTILIZATION OF CARBON DIOXIDE LASER (10600NM) IN THE TREATMENT OF

ACHROCHORDONS (SKIN TAGS) IN SOME SUDANESE PATIENTS

BY : MONA OMER IBRAHIM ELAMIN

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INTRODUCTION Achrochordons or skin tags are common

benign skin over growth usually begin in 2nd decade and peak by the 6th decade of life. There is familial disposition and more common seen in obese individuals.

The common site of skin tags are, axillae, neck, eyelids and under breasts.

Skin tags show no tendency to regress spontaneously and they are cosmetically undesirable.

New treatment modality for skin tags removal is laser therapy.

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THE STUDY OBJECTIVE To demonstrate the efficacy and safety

of Carbon Dioxide Laser (10600nm) for the removal of skin tags (Achrochordons) in some Sudanese patients.

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MATERIALS AND METHODS This is a prospective descriptive,

intervention study performed in the laser clinic, institute of laser, Sudan University of Science and Technology, Khartoum, Sudan.

It was conducted from June – October 2014.

The study included a total of 10 patients clinically diagnosed as having skin tags, they were selected from different dermatology clinics in Khartoum state.

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Inclusion Criteria:-Patients clinically diagnosed as skin tags -Over 18 years of age-Able to give informed consent.-Desires removal of lesions.

Exclusion Criteria:-Less than 18 years.-Pregnant. -Unable to give informed consent.

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THE LASER SYSTEM: The laser system used in this study was

CO2 laser system, its model IB-60IB, China.

CO2 laser system emits wavelength of 10600 nm, maximum power 30 Watt, penetration depth is approximately 0.03 mm.

The tissue target for CO2 laser is water. When light is absorbed by water inside the target tissues, rapid heating up to 100oC occurs. Hence vaporization of the targeted tissue water as steam.

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LASER PROCEDURES : All patients received single session, of

the same laser parameters, power 3.5 watt, repetitive pulse, duty time 0.1sec, idle time 0.1sec.

The laser hand piece was applied horizontally by non contact method targeting the base of the lesion, removal of the lesions or blanching of the color of the base was the main feature noticed indicating the progress of treatment.

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EVALUATION OF THE RESULT: Four elements were considered for

evaluation of the results -Persistence of any of the lesions.-Discoloration after 3weeks.-Atrophic or hypertrophic scars-Patients satisfaction < 80%

For evaluation of the response, each of the above four elements was graded 25%. Excellent response mean that no element was noticed, very good response if the percentage scored is 25%, good response if the percentage scored is 50%, poor response if the score >50%.

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RESULTS Ten patients with skin tags were

included in this study their ages were range between 22- 48 years, 6 of them were females and 4 were males.10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1 Patient

number

M F F F F M M F F M Gender

44 42 39 27 35 48 34 38 35 22 Age in

years

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PATIENT'S DISTRIBUTION BY SITE OF SKIN TAGS

Neck Axillae Thigh Chin0%

10%

20%

30%

40%

50%

60%

70%

80%

90%

Eight patients (80%) had skin tags on the neck; axillae were involved in 2 of them (20%), single lesion on the chin in one patient (10%), and single lesion on the thigh in one patient (10%),

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ASSOCIATION WITH OTHER BENIGN SKIN TUMOR

DPN & tags Tags only0%

10%

20%

30%

40%

50%

60%

70%

Six patients (60%) had DPN, four patients (40%) had skin tags only,

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:CONCLUSION

In our study we found that CO2 laser therapy for skin tags is, easy to use, with excellent response and minimal complications to patients, which is highly encouraging and showed the possibility of laser therapy to gain the upper hand in treatment of skin tags.

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RECOMMENDATIONS:

As lasers are becoming an important intervention in dermatology, I recommended that further studies with larger sample size should be done, to investigate the optimal laser parameters for skin tags removal and to be sure no side effect and complication.

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48years male with multiple skin tags on the neck. (A) Before treatment, (B) one week after treatment with CO2 laser, power: 3.5 watt, repetitive

pulse, duty time: 0.1sec, (C) three weeks after treatment the response was excellant

A B C

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35years female with multiple skin tags on the neck. (A) Before treatment, (B) three weeks after treatment with CO2 laser, power: 3.5 watt, repetitive pulse, duty time: 0.1sec, the response was v.good

A B

A B

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22 years male with single skin tag on the chin. (A) Before treatment, (B) one week after treatment with CO2 laser, power: 3.5 watt, repetitive pulse, duty time: 0.1sec, the response was excellant

A B

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42years female with single skin tags on the thight. (A) Before treatment, (B) one week after treatment with CO2 laser, power: 3.5

watt, repetitive pulse, duty time: 0.1sec, the response was excellent.

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A B

44years male with multiple skin tags on the neck. (A) Before treatment, (B) one week after treatment with CO2 laser,

power: 3.5 watt, repetitive pulse, duty time: 0.1sec, idle time 0.1sec the response was excellent

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38years female with multiple skin tags on the neck. (A) Before treatment, (B) one week after treatment with CO2 laser, power:

3.5 watt, repetitive pulse, duty time: 0.1sec, idle time 0.1sec the response was excellent

A B

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38years female with multiple skin tags on the neck. (A) Before treatment, (B) one week after treatment with CO2 laser, power: 3.5 watt, repetitive pulse,

duty time: 0.1sec, idle time 0.1sec the response was excellent

A B