Immediate Analgesic Effect of Non-thermal CO2 Laser Therapy (NTCLT) on Oral Ulcers in a Kidney Transplant Patient with Leukopenia

Abstract

Introduction: The significant and immediate analgesic effect of Non-thermal CO2 Laser Therapy (NTCLT) as an efficient, safe, and innovative photobiomodulation (PBM) approach has been demonstrated in some painful oral lesions, such as recurrent oral aphthous ulcers, oral lesions of pemphigus vulgaris, and oral mucositis due to chemotherapy of solid tumors. Case Presentation: We report a case of a kidney recipient patient hospitalized due to pancytopenia, fever, and painful oral ulcers. According to the clinical features of the oral lesions and after extensive workups, drug-induced leucopenia, and the resultant leucopenia-induced oral ulceration were the most acceptable diagnoses for the patient. She was referred to our laser department for pain reduction of her painful oral ulcers by NTCLT. The CO2 laser (power: 1 watt) was irradiated through a thick layer of a completely transparent gel with very high water content while scanning the surface of the lesion with rapid circular motion of the defocused handpiece. Results and Conclusions: The pain of the patient's oral ulcer was relieved immediately and dramatically after NTCLT without any visible thermal side effects. The procedure was completely painless, and anesthesia was not required. The results of this report suggest that NTCLT can be considered a promising procedure for significant and instant pain relief of leucopenia-induced oral ulceration in kidney recipient patients without any thermal complications.