Long-term effects of pulsed high-intensity laser therapy in the treatment of post-burn pruritus: a double-blind, placebo-controlled, randomized study.

Abstract

We assessed the long-term effects of pulsed high-intensity laser therapy (HILT) in post-burn pruritus treatment. A total of 49 adult burn patients with mean age of 31.53 ± 10.14years participated, with 24 patients randomly assigned to the active laser group (ALG) and 25 in the placebo laser group (PLG). The ALG received HILT three times per week for 6weeks, while the PLG received placebo HILT. Both groups received 10-mg cetirizine tablets twice daily and 10mg at bedtime. All patients were advised to massage their burn scars with coconut oil for 5min four times daily. The outcomes measured were the itch severity scale (ISS), impairment of pruritus-related quality of life (QoL), pain level by the visual analog scale (VAS), hand grip strength by handheld dynamometer, and daily cetirizine intake. Repeated-measures ANOVA was used to compare the baseline and post-treatment measurements and after 12weeks of follow-up. Statistical significance was set at P < 0.05. ISS decreased significantly in the ALG after 6weeks of treatment and after 12weeks of follow-up compared with the PLG. The QoL results showed a significant improvement in the ALG compared with the PLG, which continued after 12weeks. VAS results significantly decrease, hand grip strength significantly improved, and cetirizine intake significantly decreased post-treatment in the ALG relative to the PLG. HILT combined with cetirizine seems more effective in patients with post-burn pruritus than a placebo laser procedure with cetirizine.