Intense pulsed light vs silicone gel sheet in the management of hypertrophic scars: an interventional comparative trial in the Indian population

ABSTRACTIntroduction: Hypertrophic scars are abnormal scars that are a source of great functional, psychological and financial burden to the patient. Currently available treatment modalities are either very cumbersome to use or have not provided very satisfactory results. Intense pulsed light (IPL) therapy for the management of hypertrophic scars has been recently introduced. However, most of the studies available are from the Western population. In this trial, we aim to study the effect of IPL on the South Indian population with darker skin and compare it with an existing treatment modality (silicone gel sheet). Materials and Methods: This trial was an interventional clinical trial conducted from September 2015 to March 2017 on 28 patients with 65 hypertrophic scars. Each scar was divided into 2 equal parts (4.6 x 1 cm2). One half of the scar was treated to 4 sessions of 29J/cm2 of IPL at 3 weekly intervals. A silicone gel sheet (SGS) was applied over the other half and changed at 3 weekly intervals. The...