Journal of Asia Pacific Aesthetic Sciences

Abstract: Melasma is an acquired disorder of facial symmetrical hyperpigmentation due to multiple photomechanical factors. Evidence revealed that treating melasma should be able to target both the hyperpigmentation and the vascular anomalies to overcome the problems related to therapeutic efficacy and safety. The current study aimed to evaluate the safety and effectiveness of combination therapy involving Q-switched Nd: YAG 1064 nm and Pulsed Dye Laser 595 nm in the Chinese population in Malaysia with Fitzpatrick skin phototypes type III to IV. This study involved a retrospective study among 27 Chinese female patients associated with melasma and treated with ten sessions of a combination treatment at three weekly intervals from January 2022 to December 2022. The clinical photographs were examined to assess the mMASI score between the 1st, 5th and 10th treatment's visits. Statistical analysis revealed a significant effect of combination treatment on the mMASI scores reduction across the visits from the 1st visit (8.74±2.95), 5th visit (6.33±2.60), and 10th visit (6.00±3.21). There was a significant difference between the 1st and 5th visit (p < 0.001) and between the 1st and 10th visit (p0.05). In terms of treatment’s adverse reactions, most patients did not exhibit any adverse reaction (n=19, 70.4%), and only the minority of them demonstrated redness (n=1, 3.7%) and hyperpigmentation (n=7, 25.9%) following the combination treatment. The combination of 10 sessions of Q-switched Nd: YAG 1064 nm and Pulsed Dye Laser 595 nm was proven effective and safe on Chinese female patients with melasma with Fitzpatrick skin phototypes type III to IV.