High magnification in situ viewing of wound healing in oral mucosa.

Microscope endoscopy is a technique which allows high resolution, non-invasive examination of soft tissues. This study employed microscope endoscopy to examine the process of healing following exposure of the oral mucosa to carbon dioxide laser radiation. On the wound boundaries, cellular debris and the laser-induced char layer were shed as epithelial migration occurred. Wounds healed by secondary intention, with complete epithelial closure by 72 hours. A marked vascular response was evident from 6 to 48 hours following wounding, a time period coincident with the known pattern of blood vessel activation and infiltration of the wound site by leukocytes. The use of microscope endoscopy as an adjunct to biopsy and other invasive diagnostic methods in the assessment and follow-up of soft tissue pathology may have value in clinical practice.