Neža Golmajer Zima MSc, Nina Verdel PhD, Matjaž Lukač PhD, Boris Majaron PhD
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引用次数: 0
Abstract
Objectives
Assess the suitability of the technique for objective monitoring of laser tattoo removal by an extended treatment protocol.
Materials and Methods
One half of the tattoo in the first volunteer was treated with nanosecond and the other half with picosecond laser pulses at 1064 nm. In the second subject, four test areas were treated repeatedly using different radiant exposures from 1.5 to 6 J/cm2. Measurements of diffuse reflectance spectra and photothermal radiometric transients were performed 4–20 weeks after each treatment session. Inverse Monte Carlo analysis based on a three-layer model of tattooed skin was applied to assess the tattoo characteristics and analyze their changes.
Results
The results clearly indicate a gradual reduction of the ink content and an increase of the subsurface depth of the tattoo layer with all treatments at a radiant exposure of 3 J/cm2 or higher. The observed dependences on laser pulse duration, radiant exposure, and a number of treatments are in excellent agreement with visual fading of the tattoo.
Conclusions
The presented methodology enables noninvasive characterization of tattoos in human skin and objective monitoring of the laser removal treatment.
期刊介绍:
Lasers in Surgery and Medicine publishes the highest quality research and clinical manuscripts in areas relating to the use of lasers in medicine and biology. The journal publishes basic and clinical studies on the therapeutic and diagnostic use of lasers in all the surgical and medical specialties. Contributions regarding clinical trials, new therapeutic techniques or instrumentation, laser biophysics and bioengineering, photobiology and photochemistry, outcomes research, cost-effectiveness, and other aspects of biomedicine are welcome. Using a process of rigorous yet rapid review of submitted manuscripts, findings of high scientific and medical interest are published with a minimum delay.