Scleroderma and Raynaud's phenomenon improve with high-peak power laser therapy: A case report

摘要

Photobiotherapy is the clinical application of light for healing decubitus ulcers and other superficial wounds. Mester and colleagues, who reported healing of chronic soft tissue ulcers with application of a low-energy (1-4 J/cm~2) ruby laser introduced low-level laser therapy (LLLT) as a therapeutic modality.2 They studied more than 1,000 human cases of recalcitrant ulcers of different etiology and reported improvement in more than 70% of those cases using various laser systems with a dose of approximately 4J/cm~2. Subsequent studies have followed, studying LLLT in Raynaud's phenomenon and diabetic microangiopathy. A case report by Eisen and Alster demonstrated marked softening of a sclerotic morphea plaque and improvement in skin coloration with the use of a 585-nm pulsed dye laser without side effects or complications.3 In a study of LLLT using an 890-nm diode laser by Ezzati and colleagues, irradiation of third-degree burns on rats demonstrated greater wound closure rate.4 This case report supports the use of a novel laser not previously reported in the treatment of systemic sclerosis and Raynaud's phenomenon.