Thermal response of human skin epidermis in different skin types to 595-nm laser irradiation and cryogen spray cooling: an ex-vivo study

Tianhong Dai; Brian M. Pikkula; James William Tunnell; David Chang; Bahman Anvari

doi:10.1117/12.476134

12 September 2003 Thermal response of human skin epidermis in different skin types to 595-nm laser irradiation and cryogen spray cooling: an ex-vivo study

Tianhong Dai, Brian M. Pikkula, James William Tunnell, David Chang, Bahman Anvari

Author Affiliations +

Proceedings Volume 4949, Lasers in Surgery: Advanced Characterization, Therapeutics, and Systems XIII; (2003) https://doi.org/10.1117/12.476134
Event: Biomedical Optics, 2003, San Jose, CA, United States

Abstract

Improved laser treatment of port wine stains is expected by utilizing higher incident dosages, longer pulse durations, and longer wavelengths than those currently used in clinical settings. However, higher incident dosages also increase the risk of nonspecific thermal injury to the epidermis. Using ex-vivo human skin samples, we investigated the thermal respone of human skin epidermis in different skin types ot 595-nm wavelength laser irradiation at high incident dosages (up to 20 J/cm²) and long pulse durations (1.5 to 40 milliseconds) in conjunction with cryogen spray cooling (CSC). Human skin samples (Fitzpatrick types I-VI) from consenting adult females undergoing trans-rectus abdominis myocutaneoues flap procedures were irradiated at the incident dosages D₀=4, 6, 10, 15, and 20 J/cm², pulse durations τ_laser=1.5, 10, and 40 milliseconds without and with CSC (Refrigerant-134A, spurt duration τ_CSC=100 milliseconds). Thermal injury to the epidermis was evaluated by histological observations. Experimental results showed that thermal injury to the epidermis could not be avoided in skin type VI even at D₀ = 4 J/cm² in conjunction with CSC. However, CSC allowed utilization of high incident dosages (15 - 20 J/cm²) in skin types I-IV. Under the same incident dosage, longer pulse durations led to decreased degree of thermal injury to the epidermis. Threshold values for irradiation parameters that resulted in thermal injury to the epidermis for each skin type were obtained.

Citation Download Citation

Tianhong Dai, Brian M. Pikkula, James William Tunnell, David Chang, and Bahman Anvari "Thermal response of human skin epidermis in different skin types to 595-nm laser irradiation and cryogen spray cooling: an ex-vivo study", Proc. SPIE 4949, Lasers in Surgery: Advanced Characterization, Therapeutics, and Systems XIII, (12 September 2003); https://doi.org/10.1117/12.476134

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