Jinxiang Yang,1,2,* Jinwen Shen,1,2,* Yuwei Kong,1,2,* Lei Wang,1,2 Zhirong Yao,1,2 Jianying Liang,1,2 Xia Yu1,2 

1Department of Dermatology, Xinhua Hospital, Shanghai Jiaotong University School of Medicine, Shanghai, People’s Republic of China; 2Institute of Dermatology, Shanghai Jiaotong University School of Medicine, Shanghai, People’s Republic of China

*These authors contributed equally to this work

Correspondence: Xia Yu, Department of Dermatology, Xinhua Hospital, Shanghai Jiaotong University School of Medicine; Institute of Dermatology, Shanghai Jiaotong University School of Medicine, Shanghai, 200092, People’s Republic of China, Tel +86-25076927, Email 10517832@qq.com; jianyingliang@163.com

Background and Objective: The case report aims to demonstrate the therapeutic effects of a single session of intense pulsed light (IPL) treatment on facial multiple melanocytic nevus-like dark macules induced by severe acne vulgaris.
Materials and Methods: A 17-year-old male with acne was assessed as Pillsbury IV according to the Pillsbury classification. After three sessions of photodynamic therapy (PDT), he experienced an increase in number and darkening of facial melanocytic nevus-like dark macules. We attempted to use broadband light (BBL) (SCITON Company, USA) (420nm, 8J, 180ms; 515nm, 13J, 20ms; 560nm, 16J, 24ms; 590nm, 16J, 24ms) therapy to improve post-inflammatory erythema (PIE) and post-inflammatory hyperpigmentation (PIH). Following a baseline assessment, we performed a single session of IPL treatment on the patient and evaluated the changes in melanocytic nevus-like dark macules, PIE, PIH, and sebum secretion through standardized photography.
Results: Compared to the baseline, we observed a significant reduction of the patient’s melanocytic nevus-like dark macules and a significant improvement in PIE, PIH, and sebum secretion after a single IPL treatment.
Conclusions: This study provides preliminary evidence of the effects of IPL treatment on melanocytic nevi associated with severe acne vulgaris. Further research is warranted to elucidate the underlying mechanisms and promote the wider application of this treatment modality in managing acne sequelae.

Keywords: acne vulgaris, intense pulsed light, melanocytic nevus, photodynamic therapy