Treatment of Congenital Melanocytic Nevi in the Eyelid and Periorbital Region With Ablative Lasers.

BACKGROUND

Congenital melanocytic nevi (CMN) that occur on the eyelid and periorbital region cause cosmetic disfiguring. Laser treatment has aroused interest as an alternative treatment method, and resurfacing lasers have shown promising results.

OBJECTIVE

This study aimed to evaluate the efficacy and safety of carbon dioxide laser and erbium:yttrium aluminum garnet laser to treat CMN of the eyelid and periorbital region.

METHODS AND MATERIALS: Twenty patients with CMN were included in this study and were treated with either the CO2 or erbium:yttrium aluminum garnet laser. Clinical efficacy outcomes were evaluated by visual assessment and L*a*b* color space evaluation at least 6 months after treatment.

RESULTS

The average (SD) visual evaluation improvement, assessed on a 5-point scale, was 2.8 (1.27). The mean (SD) values of the relative L* improvement rate and blanching rate of the CMN lesion were 32.0% (47.9%) and 34.1% (36.2%), respectively. Spearman rank correlation coefficient between the objective and subjective evaluations was significant (P < 0.001). Three cases developed partial hypopigmentation. No patient developed hypertrophic scars.

CONCLUSION

The outcomes after laser treatment were variable, although half of the patients achieved greater than 50% clearance. It provides an alternative to surgical excision for the removal of CMN in the difficult regions. Surgery excision is inevitable for some patients.