Oct 1 2010
Scientists at the University of Toronto and the Hospital for Sick Children (SickKids) have discovered a new laser technique to minimize scarring after surgery. Researchers compared a Picosecond IR Laser (PIRL), a surgical laser, with traditional surgical lasers and surgical tools, including scalpels.
Scientists demonstrated that the use of the PIRL in mice caused minimal scarring. The PIRL produced scars that were 50% of the width of the scars generated by conventional techniques. After the PIRL surgery, the wounds healed faster. Clinical trials of the Picosecond IR Laser technique in adult patients will be conducted as early as 2012.
SickKids Foundation, the Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada (NSERC), and the Collaborative Health Research Projects Program of the Canadian Institutes of Health Research (CIHR) supported the clinical study. The co-principal investigator of the study is Dwayne Miller, Professor of the Institute of Optical Sciences, and the Departments of Chemistry and Physics at the University of Toronto.
The co-principal investigator of the study is Dr. Benjamin Alman, a Senior Scientist and Head of the Division of Orthopaedic Surgery at SickKids. Alman’s lab will be shifted to the Cancer, Stem Cells & Regenerative Medicine neighbourhood located in the SickKids Research & Learning Tower. The SickKids Research & Learning Tower will promote discussions with colleagues from various scientific disciplines.