Experimental study of multiple-intermittent cryogen spurts and laser pulses for the treatment of port wine stain birthmarks

Abstract

Cryogen spray cooling (CSC) is used to minimize the risk of epidermal damage during pulsed laser treatment of port wine stain (PWS) birthmarks. Unfortunately, the current approach to CSC does not provide the necessary epidermal protection for all patients, particularly those with darker skin types. Therefore, alternative approaches need to be sought to improve PWS laser therapy. On a previous numerical study we showed that using multiple-intermittent CSC spurts and laser pulses could permit, under certain conditions, the use of higher laser doses while providing sufficient epidermal protection. In this study we show some results of ongoing experimental to study the feasibility of implementing clinically such an approach.