A Prospective Single‐Subject Triple‐Blinded Single‐Center Pilot Study of Laser‐Assisted 5‐Fluorouracil Versus Laser‐Assisted Corticosteroid Treatment for Keloids

In this pilot study of keloid patients, POSAS scores significantly improved after both laser-assisted TAC delivery and laser-assisted 5-FU delivery, with no statistically significant difference between the two treatment arms. However, there was a noted discrepancy in patient reports of post-procedural hyperpigmentation, with more patients experiencing this adverse effect within the 5-FU arm than in the TAC arm. While fractionally ablative laser-assisted drug delivery with either 5-FU or TAC is a safe and effective method to treat keloids, special attention should be paid to hyperpigmentation as a possible adverse effect in patients with darker skin tones, who are disproportionately affected by both keloids and hyperpigmentation.