CO2 and erbium YAG laser in eyelid surgery. A comparison

Abstract

Lasers are finding increasing use in cosmetic and reconstructive plastic surgery. We compared the erbium-YAG laser and the CO2 laser to conventional eyelid surgery with a scalpel. We operated on 58 patients using the erbium-YAG laser and on 32 using the CO2 laser. Surgeries were benign tumor excisions and removal, xanthelasma removal, lower and upper eyelid blepharoplasties, and skin resurfacing in the area of the lower eyelid. Wound healing with the CO2 laser was significantly slower because of its larger thermal necrosis zone, but the hemostasis with the CO2 laser makes removal of deeper lesions easier. Advantages are the wide application spectrum for incisional and ablative surgery. The erbium-YAG laser is an excellent for ablating superficial benign lesions, including that in the area of the lid margin and close to the lacrimal puncta without scars. The application spectrums of the erbium-YAG and CO2 lasers complement one another. The erbium-YAG laser is superior for esthetic skin resurfacing and ablation of superficial lesions, and the CO2 laser allows hemorrhage-free noncontact incisional surgery.