A comparative study of effectiveness of microneedling with and without topical corticosteroids in post-burn hypertrophic scars of face and neck

Abstract

Background: The standard treatment of post-burns scars has unsatisfactory outcomes and required several treatments. Objective: To evaluate efficacy of the microneedling with or without topical steroids on treatment of post-burn hypertrophic scars in face and neck. Patients and Methods: We included patients with post-burn hypertrophic scar of face and neck, caused by burn within the 1st year after burn, we excluded patients with coagulation defects. Patients were divided into 3 groups; Group A: microneedling once/month for 5 months, Group B: microneedling with topical steroids once/month for 5 months, and Group C: control group for just conservative treatment. Histopathological study was used for evaluation. Results: we included 60 participants; the mean age was 20 ± 9 years. After 3 & 6 months microneedling significantly decrease the Vancouver scar scale (VSS), and adding steroids significantly improve the results. Microneedling group significantly decreased the VSS after 3 and 6 months. Moreover, adding steroids significantly improved the results. Histopathologicaly, after 6 months, there was statistically difference between the three groups in thickness (p= <0.001), Nodules (p= 0.02) and inflammation (p= 0.02) of the scar. Conclusion: Microneedling with or without topical steroids found to improve the outcomes of post-burn hypertrophic scars.