Burn healing with a diode laser: 670 nm at different doses as compared to a placebo group

Objective: A study on burn healing in rats was initiated using a diode laser at varied doses for determination of optimum dosimetry and treatment schedule. Materials and Methods: A number of male Sprague-Dawley rats were randomly assigned to several groups. Anesthesia (a mixture of ketamine HCl and Xylocaine) was administered intraperitoneally. Burn on both flanks was created using a preheated metal probe and measured daily using a caliper. The right side of the treated rats was irradiated five times and three times per week. Slopes from the actual burn areas were obtained and compared against the control with the healing rate calculated and expressed in percent. Results: In reference to the control group, no significant difference in healing was observed. In comparing both treatment schedules, there was likewise no significant difference at any day in both age-groups. Notably in younger rats, accelerated healing was observed with the highest rate in the lower range of doses (I and 5 J/cm(2)), 12.4% and 11.6%, respectively. Conclusion: This experiment affirms that the beneficial effect on burn healing in rats is indeed affected by an interplay of several factors.