Treatment of rhinophyma with ER : YAG laser

Background and Objective: Rhinophyma is a benign, disfiguring disorder of t he nose which presents the end stage of acne rosacea, and can also occasion ally result in nasal airway obstruction. We describe the first series of pa tients treated with Erbium laser. Study design/Materials and Methods: Severe-to-moderate rhinophyma in six pa tients were treated at our institution between 1995 and 1996, using the Erb ium:YAG (Erb:YAG) laser. Results: All patients achieved marked cosmetic improvement, with no complic ations. Post-operative healing time was seven to fourteen days-significantl y shorter than similar other modalities. Conclusions: The Erbium laser provides very accurate tissue ablation and al lows the sculpturing of the hypertrophied areas, offering good cosmetic res ults, with a very short healing period as shown in our study. (C) 2001 Wile y-Liss, Inc.