Treatment Outcome of Oral Leukoplakia with Er:YAG Laser: A 5-Year Follow-Up Prospective Comparative Study
Arduino PG, Cafaro A, Cabras M, Gambino A, Broccoletti R.Photomed Laser Surg. October 2018.
Objective
The purpose of this prospective analysis was to evaluate the efficacy of erbium-substituted yttrium aluminum garnet (Er:YAG) laser compared with that of conventional surgery, regarding the long-term outcome of nondysplastic oral leukoplakias (OL). Background: To date, this comparison has never been performed.
Methods
Patients were randomly allocated to two different groups: some underwent surgical excision with traditional scalpel (Group TrSc) and others underwent an ablative session with Er:YAG laser (Group Las), with these modalities: 1.5-W power, 150-mJ pulse energy, 10-Hz frequency, 500-μs pulse duration, and 0.9-mm spot size. During the follow-up period, the evolution of the OL was listed as (1) healing: if novel lesions did not appear in the same place of the surgery and (2) recurrence: if a new mucosal change has been detailed in the equivalent place of the primary disease.
Results
One hundred seventeen lesions were treated. Fifty-eight lesions underwent surgery with traditional scalpel, whereas 59 underwent laser surgery. Follow-up ranged from 24 to 108 months (median of 58). Healing was detailed for 52.99% (n = 62) of the 117 OL, with no statistical differences between the two randomized groups. Conclusions: It seems reasonable to consider the Er:YAG laser as effective as traditional scalpel in terms of healing for OL, with the same rate of recurrences in a period of almost 5 years.
