Clinical experience in the treatment of the "red nose" using the flashlamp-pumped pulsed dye laser (585 nm).

The first 30 patients with telangiectasia of the nose that presented to our unit were treated with the SPTL-1 laser. The SPTL-1 laser emits pulsed light at a wavelength of 585 nm with a pulse duration of 450 microseconds. Patients with telangiectasia and diffuse spider nevi were included; patients with small spider nevi were excluded. The series included 23 females between 23 and 56 years (mean 37 years) and 7 male patients between 21 and 54 years (mean 42 years). A significant improvement was achieved in 24 patients (80%) and, on the whole, patient satisfaction was high, but more than one treatment session was required (mean of three treatment sessions per patient). At the 6-month follow-up there was some recurrence in two patients for which they required more treatment. No sign of scarring was noted in any patient, but some hypopigmentation occurred over the bridge of the nose of one patient.