A paper published in the May/June 2021 issue of Dermatologic Therapy found that both botulinum toxin (BTX-A) and platelet-rich plasma (PRP) injections are more effective than triamcinolone acetonide (TAC) in treating keloid scars.
Yomna Mazid El-Hamd Neinaa, et al, enrolled 60 patients with keloids. They were divided randomly into three equal groups. Group I was treated with intralesional BTX-A injection, group II with intralesional PRP injection and group III with intralesional TAC injection.
The researchers assessed outcomes using the Vancouver Scar Scale (VSS), Verbal Rating Scale (VRS) and dermoscopic examination. Additionally, histopathology and immunohistochemistry of connective tissue growth factor (CTGF) expression were evaluated.
The study revealed significant improvement of both VSS and VRS in response to all treatment modalities. There was more significant improvement of VSS in the BTX-A and PRP groups compared to the TAC group. However, no significant difference observed between BTX-A and PRP groups.
Immunohistochemical examination showed a significant decrease of CTGF expression after treatment in BTX-A and PRP groups compared to the TAC group.
