Comparison of treatment of cherry angiomata with pulsed-dye laser, potassium titanyl phosphate laser, and electrodesiccation: a randomized controlled trial.

OBJECTIVE To assess the comparative efficacy of energy treatments in resolving cherry angiomata. DESIGN Rater-blinded randomized controlled trial. SETTING Outpatient dermatology clinic in an urban referral academic medical center. PARTICIPANTS Fifteen healthy adults aged 21 to 65 years were enrolled. Two eligible individuals who were approached declined to participate, and no one enrolled was withdrawn for adverse effects. INTERVENTIONS For each participant, 3 areas on the torso were demarcated such that each area contained 4 cherry angiomata. Each area was then randomly assigned to receive 1 of the 3 treatments: pulsed-dye laser (PDL) (595 nm), potassium titanyl phosphate (KTP) laser (532 nm), or electrodesiccation. Two treatments spaced 2 weeks apart were delivered to each area. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES Standardized photographs from before treatment and 3 months after the last treatment were evaluated for color and texture on visual analog scales. RESULTS Mean change in color was a significant improvement of 7.77 (P<.001), but there was no significant difference across treatment arms (P=.19). Mean change in texture was a significant improvement of 6.23 (P<.001), and the degree of textural change also differed across treatments (P<.001). In pairwise comparisons, cherry angiomata treated with electrodesiccation were significantly less improved than were those receiving KTP laser (P=.003) and those treated with PDL (P=.001). The effects of KTP laser and PDL on texture were not different (P=.50). CONCLUSIONS Cherry angiomata can be effectively treated with electrodesiccation and with laser. Laser, especially PDL, may minimize the likelihood of treatment-associated textural change. Trial Registration clinicaltrials.gov Identifier: NCT00509977.