Effectiveness of erbium:YAG laser and cryosurgery in seborrheic keratoses: Randomized, prospective intraindividual comparison study.

BACKGROUND AND

OBJECTIVE

Seborrheic keratoses (SK) are benign cutaneous lesions frequently seen in old age. The aim of the study is to compare the efficiency of Er:YAG lasers with cryotherapy in the treatment of SK.

PATIENTS AND

METHODS

The study was carried out on 42 patients with SK sized 0.5-3 cm, located on the back, chest, face and neck. Lesions with a similar size and location on the same patient were matched. In the same session, half of the lesions were treated with cryotherapy, while the other half were treated with Er:YAG lasers. All of the patients were clinically evaluated in two recalls with a one-month interval between appointments. The efficiency of the treatments was clinically evaluated.

RESULTS

Following the first treatment, complete healing was detected in all of the lesions (100%) treated with Er:YAG lasers, while the healing rate was 68% in the cryotherapy group (p < 0.01). In the Er:YAG laser-treated group, hyperpigmentation was significantly lower and more erythema developed than in the cryotherapy group.

CONCLUSION

Er:YAG lasers offer a one-step procedure which is a very simple and economic treatment and provides an alternative treatment method with better cosmetic results compared to cryotherapy.