Long-term results of the treatment of pregnancy-induced striae distensae using a 1550-nm non-ablative fractional laser

ABSTRACT

Background: Striae distensae (SD) are a type of dermal scarring that is quite common and difficult to treat. Two forms are known: striae rubrae (SR) and striae albae (SA). Objective: We compared the long-term clinical effectiveness of a 1550-nm non-ablative fractional laser (NAFL) in treating SR and SA. Materials and methods: We included 16 female patients (8 with SR and 8 with SA) who had developed abdominal SD during pregnancy. All underwent five moderately high-energy sessions of 1550-nm NAFL treatment at 4-week intervals. The strial widths and lengths were measured before, and 1 month and 1 year after treatment. Results: The mean strial width decreased from 6.94 mm before treatment to 3.25 mm at the first follow-up visit (p = 3.95 × 10⁻⁵) and to 3.13 mm at the second follow-up visit (p = 2.44 × 10⁻⁵). Similarly, the mean strial length decreased from 6.06 to 2.88 cm at the first follow-up visit (p = 1.7 × 10⁻⁴) and to 2.75 cm at the second follow-up visit (p = 9.52 × 10⁻⁵). Conclusion: NAFL treatment was effective long term in both SR and SA patients.

KEYWORDS:

• Non-ablative fractional laser
• striae albae
• striae distensae
• striae rubrae

Acknowledgements

The author would like to thank Minal Caliskan, Samuel W. Baker and Billur Sezgin for their inputs in analysing the data and interpreting the results.

Declaration of conflicts of interests

The author declared no potential conflicts of interest with respect to the research, authorship and/or publication of this article.

Funding

The author received no financial support.

Additional information

Funding

The author received no financial support.