A Combined Injectable and Fractional 1470 nm Laser Approach for the Management of Facial Atrophic Acne Scars: Prospective Ultrasound-Based Evaluation.

Background

Acne vulgaris affects up to 80% of individuals aged 11-30 years and frequently results in permanent scarring with significant psychosocial impact. This prospective single-arm case series evaluated the safety and high-frequency ultrasound-assessed morphological changes in a combined protocol integrating subcision, PEGDE-crosslinked hyaluronic acid supplemented with calcium hydroxyapatite (CaHA), and fractional 1470 nm diode laser therapy in patients with facial atrophic acne scars.

Methods

Twenty patients (aged 18-42 years, Fitzpatrick phototypes I-II) with moderate-to-severe atrophic acne scars underwent subcision of fibrotic adhesions using a 22G cannula combined with a single subcutaneous injection of 2 mL PEGDE-crosslinked hyaluronic acid with CaHA microparticles on day 0, followed by two sessions of fractional 1470 nm diode laser therapy on days 7 and 28. Scar depth and diameter were assessed using high-frequency ultrasound (48 MHz) at baseline and on days 28, 49, 77, and 139.

Results

All participants completed the protocol without serious adverse events. High-frequency ultrasound demonstrated progressive reductions in mean scar depth (from 0.35 to 0.05 mm; -86%) and scar diameter (from 4.27 to 1.06 mm; -75%) by day 139, with reductions continuing beyond the active treatment phase. In linear mixed-effects models accounting for within-patient clustering of the two lesions assessed per participant, the reductions in both depth and diameter were statistically significant at every follow-up timepoint relative to baseline (all p < 0.001). These ultrasound findings were not corroborated by a control group, blinded assessment, validated clinical grading, or patient-reported outcomes.

Conclusions

In this single-arm case series, the combined subcision, PEGDE-crosslinked HA-CaHA filler, and fractional 1470 nm diode laser protocol was well tolerated and associated with progressive, sustained reductions in high-frequency ultrasound-measured scar depth and diameter. As an uncontrolled, unblinded study without validated clinical grading or patient-reported outcomes, these findings are preliminary and require confirmation in larger, controlled trials.