Effects of Preoperative Extracorporeal Shockwave Therapy on Scar Formation—A Pilot Study on 24 Subjects Undergoing Abdominoplasty Surgery

Abstract

Objectives Extracorporeal shockwave therapy (ESWT) has been demonstrated as a feasible noninvasive method to improve wound healing. This effect was demonstrated to result from increased perfusion and angiogenesis due to systemic growth factor expression. We, therefore, hypothesized that preoperative ESWT reduces scar formation after surgery. Methods A prospective, controlled pilot study on 24 patients undergoing abdominoplasty was conducted and the efficacy of preoperative unfocused, low energy EWST was evaluated. The right and left half of the operative area were randomly allocated to ESWT or placebo treatment in intrapatient control design. At 6 and 12 weeks after surgery, scar formation was evaluated by 19 different scar parameters included in the patient, observer scar assessment, and the Vancouver scar scale. Results The overall rating of the Vancouver and POSAS scale with Mann–Whitney (MW) analysis revealed a clear trend favoring ESWT. At week 6, 7 of 19 parameters clearly favored ESWT (MW > 0.53). At week 12, 8 of 19 parameters clearly favored ESWT. The largest differences were observed in thickness and overall impression (Vancouver scar scale). Conclusions ESWT presumably reduces scar formation and postoperative symptoms after abdominoplasty surgery. Further studies are required to confirm ESWT efficacy with statistical significance. Lasers Surg. Med. © 2019 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.