摘要

Objectives: An Update on the choice of Vascular Lasers for vascular disorders. Introduction: The pulsed dye laser(PDL) is among the oldest vascular laser in use in dermatology today. Over the years new knowledge on characteristic of vascular abnormalities has widen and newer vascular devices to more efficiently treat more types of vascular lesions. e.g. cryogen cooling, variable pulse widths, are incorporated into the vascular device and allow vascular lasers to function more efficaciously and with less side effects. Materials / method: Vascular lesions targetted include portwine stain, haemangioma, telangiectasis, rosacea, poikiloderma of Civette, flushing and facial redness and treatment of red scars and striae. To improve treatment outcome and minimize complications, the correct diagnosis, the choice of treatment devices, the choice of treatment protocols, the determination of vascular physiology and calibers are extremely important. Results: A variety of laser and light-based devices have been demonstrated to be useful in the treatment of ETR. They include:  Pulsed dye laser (585/595 nm)  KTP laser (532 nm)  Long pulsed Alexandrite laser (755 nm)  Long pulsed Nd:YAG lasers (532/1064 nm)  Long pulsed diode laser (900 nm)  Copper vapour laser (510/578 nm)  Intense pulsed light (500-1000 nm). The choice of lasers and light devices depends on the type of vasculature, the depth, the vessels size, the blood flow speed, skin colour and location/skin thickness. Conclusion: A sound understanding of the vascular characteristics and the treatment protocol are essential to ensure effective treatment and few side effects.