Treatment of port-wine stains: A comparative study of the argon and pulsed dye laser based on our clinical experience

Port-wine stains are rather frequent congenital vascular malformations, with an even distribution between the sexes at birth of approximately 0.3%. Port-wine stains can be classified in two different clinical forms: premature and mature. In childhood, premature port-wine stains can have a spontaneous regression and, in most cases, they just need careful clinical surveillance. On the other hand, mature port-wine stains evolve from a rosy macular lesion, present at birth, to a dark red or purple lesion, sometimes a hypertrophic and nodular lesion, which gets progressively bigger with the corporal development of the concerned area. Most port-wine stains are located on the head and neck, with an 85% emisomatic and dermatomeric distribution. The aesthetic damage can be highly significant leading to remarkable psychological problems. Therapies are manifold, surgical or non surgical. Our study considers 203 patients treated from 1994 to 2000, presenting port-wine lesions, and compares their treatment with an Argon laser and a Candela pulsed dye laser. Although the pulsed dye laser is the first choice for the treatment of port-wine lesions, the Argon laser gives better results with dark flat port-wine stains.