Fractionated co2 laser, exosomes, and their combination in the treatment of atrophic acne scars

Abstract

The properties of CO2 fractional laser for dermal restoring are widely documented in scientific literature, as well as the use of exosomes in skin regeneration and wound scarring. With that being said, the aim of this research was to determine the therapeutic effect of CO2 fractional laser, exosomes derived from amniotic fluid and the combination of both to treat atrophic acne scars. This project was studied through a serial of prospective cases that took place between March and July of 2023. Fifteen female patients who had Fitzpatrick phototypes (II-IV) where divided into three groups (A, B and C). First, Group A received CO2 fractional laser whereas group B received intralesional exosomes. Subsequently, group C received CO2 fractional laser plus intralesional and topical exosomes. All three groups received their treatments once a month, for a total of 3 sessions. In addition, acne scar subtypes morphological classification, POSAS scale and trichromatic analysis of photographs were used throughout this investigation. As a result, improvement was observed in all groups, especially in group C, which showed the best outcomes in POSAS scale and a significant reduction in the average size of scars, followed by group A and B. Therefore, the combination of CO2 fractional laser with exosomes can be proposed as an effective and safe treatment of atrophic acne scars.