A Comparative Split-Face Trial of Plant-Based Hypoallergenic Ointment vs Petroleum-Based Ointment Following Fractionated Carbon Dioxide Laser Resurfacing of the Face

Purpose: Fractionated carbon dioxide (CO2) laser resurfacing uses fractional photothermolysis with an ablative 10,600-nm wavelength for treatment of rhytides and photodamage. Although associated with reduced side effect profile from traditional ablative lasers, fractionated lasers can lead to significant erythema, edema, crusting, and exudation for 14 days. Post-care includes regular distilled water soaks and healing ointment. This study evaluated efficacy and patient satisfaction of a novel plant-based hypoallergenic ointment (Doctor Rogers RESTORE®Healing Balm; Product 1) compared to petroleum-based lanolin-containing ointment (Aquaphor® Healing Ointment; Product 2) to accelerate wound healing post-laser resurfacing of the face.Design: This was a single-center, prospective randomized, double-blinded, split-face comparative study of 10 subjects with photo-aging and rhytids who received treatment with fractionated CO2 laser between September 2017 and January 2018. Product 1 and Product 2 were randomized to each half of the face and applied from days 0 to 7 with an option to continue to day 14. The primary outcome measures were Investigator-rated degree of erythema, edema, crusting, exudation, and percentage healing, with follow-up evaluations performed at days 2, 4, 7, 14, and 30. The secondary outcome measure was patient satisfaction.Summary: Based on investigator post-resurfacing scores, day 4 showed improved erythema (50%), edema (50%), crusting (40%), and percentage healing (60%) on the Product 1-treated side compared to Product 2, with the majority of remaining patients scoring the same as Product 2. On day 14, Product 1 demonstrated improvement in erythema (50%), edema (30%), and percentage healing (30%) compared to Product 2, with all remaining patients scoring the same as Product 2. Crusting was the same between the two products on day 14. Ninety percent of patients preferred Product 1 over Product 2, found it easier to use, and were more likely to use it in the future.Conclusion: Product 1 is a plant-based hypoallergenic ointment that is safe and effective post-laser treatment and is associated with high patient satisfaction and preference.