Dr. Hugues Cartier reviews his experience using V-laser from Wontech

Patients visit aesthetic and dermatology clinics to treat various lesions that negatively affect aesthetic, social and self-esteem. One of the common reasons for patients coming to my clinic is to treat vascular lesions such as diffuse erythema, telangiectasia, spider veins, leg veins, and so forth.

A number of energy-based devices have been used from Green laser, Yellow laser, PDL (pulsed dye laser), long-pulsed Nd:YAG laser, IPL(intense pulse light), and even fractional lasers and RF needles. Among these, 500nm wavelengths are primarily chosen and used to treat superficial vascular lesions while 1064nm treats deep vascular lesions.

V-laser

Dr. Hugues Cartier, MD, is a dermatologist, phlebologist at the Clinic Saint-Jean, Arras, France. He is also the chief of wound care in the dermatology department of Arras Hospital.

I have been specializing in vascular therapy for decades and have used a variety of energy-based devices for treatment of the vascular problems. V-laser, developed by Wontech, Co., Ltd., is a solid state system that can effectively and safely treat various types of vascular lesions, and is a great device with the advantage that it has no consumables and less maintenance cost required compared to the competitors.

V-laser is a FDA approved, a long-pulsed laser system with dual wavelengths of 532nm KTP and 1064nm Nd:YAG. The laser system is highly capable of treating both superficial and deep vascular conditions in a wide range of locations, depths and thickness in all skin types.

Spot size

The V-laser system has a broad range of spot size, pulse width, fluence and frequency, allowing practitioners to perform customized procedures by adjusting parameters more precisely and delicately in consideration of each patient’s skin condition and the lesion. Also, V-laser has a touch screen that facilitates the choice of settings with a memory according to its habits and various indications.

The spot size is usually set according to the lesion’s size or/and location. I typically use 2-3mm for telangiectasia, 3-5mm for leg veins 6-12mm for rosacea. The spot size is easily detached and attached to the handpiece in the form of a cartridge. Even if a cartridge is broken, the maintenance cost is not excessively required so the burden on the user is small.

KTP 532 nm wavelength

Figure 1 Before and after. Telangiectasia Treatment with V-laser

The 532nm KTP is characterized by high absorption coefficient in hemoglobin and low penetration depth, making it ideal for the treatment of reddish superficial vascular lesions such as telangiectasia, cherry angioma, pink-red port wine stains, diffuse erythema, rosacea and many. The reason patients are satisfied with the KTP treatment is that the lesions disappears immediately after laser irradiation and is less likely to produce purpura than Pulsed Dye Laser treatment. In case of telangiectasia, I use 532nm, 3mm, 10-15ms, 8-10J/cm2, and 532nm, 6-10mm, 10-15ms, 8-10J/cm2 for rosacea. There are individual differences in the number of treatment sessions, but usually 1 to 3 sessions are recommended at 4-6week time intervals.

Nd:YAG 1064 nm wavelength

Relatively, 1064nm Nd:YAG can treat bluish deep and thick veins such as leg veins, periorbital veins, venous lakes, hemangioma and others. Patients with leg veins are very pleased with the long-pulsed Nd:YAG laser treatment. This is because it is the alternate therapy for sclerotherapy and surgery which have side effects or are likely to take a longer down time. For treatment of leg veins, I use 1064nm, 3-5mm, 20-40ms, 160-200J/cm2. It is important to adjust pulse duration according to the size of the vein. I also combines the two wavelengths when a patient has complex vascular lesions on facial telangiectasia; 1064nm, 3mm, 20ms, 90J/cm2 and then 532nm, 10mm, 12ms, 8J/cm2.

Figure 2 Before and after. Leg Vein Treatment with V-laser

A chiller is attached to the handpiece of V-laser and provides contact cooling through a sapphire window. The cooling temperature can be easily adjusted to 5, 10, 15 to 20°C and off by simply pressing the button on the main screen. V-laser’s contact cooling system is optimized to protect the surface of the skin before, during and after each laser irradiation, reduce the residual thermal damage and make patients comfortable. The benefit of the V-laser’s contact cooling is no consumables required.

Treating vascular conditions

In the name of V-laser, V is the abbreviation of vascular. As you can see from the name of the device, V-laser is primarily used to treat vascular conditions but it can also be used to treat benign pigmented lesions(i.e. sunspots, freckles, melasma), skin revitalization (i.e. enlarged pores, fine lines, skin firmness, dull skin tone, uneven skin texture), acne vulgaris, and other skin conditions including warts, onychomycosis, hair reduction.

Figure 3 Before and after. Rosacea Treatment with V-laser

As mentioned earlier, 532nm is highly absorbed by hemoglobin but also by melanin, so it can treat epidermal pigmentations effectively as well. V-laser has been shown to greatly improve pigmentation removal on dorsum of hands, arms and décolletage as well as the face. In addition, poikiloderma, a mixture of vascular and pigmented lesions, is a good candidate for the long-pulsed KTP treatment.

As is well known, 1064nm Nd:YAG is the versatile wavelength due to the features of its absorption coefficient in hemoglobin, melanin and water. With a wide range of pulse durations, it is used for warts, onychomycosis and many. Bulk heating of the dermis induces neocollagenesis by deliverying laser energy to the skin multiple passes of low energy at a pulse width of 0.3ms, allowing non-ablative rejuvenation with no pain and downtime. This procedure improves diffuse redness, large pores, dull skin tone and uneven skin texture and even scars. I conduct this for the rejuvenation only or combine with other treatments for integrated skin care.

Taken together, The V-laser is a robust device with dual wavelength, wide parameter setting range and contact cooling system for safe and effective treatment of various lesions including vascular and pigmentary disorders, and skin rejuvenation. V-laser is a device that satisfies both the physician and the patient. Many clinics are limited in space and budget but physicians can treat various indications effectively and safely with a single device, V-laser, resulting in faster ROI. Also, the patient can receive a holistic skin care by treating various problems at once.


Find out more at: www.wtlaser.com/