Evidence map›Paper›PMID 37296156›Full record

ArticleScientific reports2023

Topical timolol maleate 0.5% after fractional carbon dioxide laser versus fractional carbon dioxide laser alone in treatment of acne scars: split face comparative study.

Aya Reda Mohamed Hawwas, Hassan Abou Khodair Mohamed, Osama Magdy Elshahat Sayedahmed, Mohamed L Elsaie

Open access · goldAbstract read
In one paragraph

Article in Scientific reports, 2023. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 4 papers.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
4citing papers in PubMed
2.0field-weighted citation impact, top 14% of its field
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

4 citing papers in PubMed, 7 citations in OpenAlex.

  1. Trial
  2. Fractional COLasers in medical science · 2025
    Trial
  3. GPCRs as key regulators in wound healing.Frontiers in cell and developmental biology · 2026
    Review
  4. Review
4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

4 authors at 2 institutions in 1 country.

Aya Reda Mohamed HawwasDepartment of Dermatology, Venereology and Andrology, Damietta Faculty of Medicine, Al-Azhar University, Damietta, Egypt.
Hassan Abou Khodair MohamedDepartment of Dermatology, Venereology and Andrology, Damietta Faculty of Medicine, Al-Azhar University, Damietta, Egypt.
Osama Magdy Elshahat SayedahmedDepartment of Dermatology, Venereology and Andrology, Damietta Faculty of Medicine, Al-Azhar University, Damietta, Egypt.
Mohamed L ElsaieDepartment of Dermatology, Medical and Clinical Research Institute, National Research Centre, Dokki, Egypt. Egydoc77@yahoo.com.ORCID 0000-0001-7541-5241
Damietta University · EGNational Research Centre · EG

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

Acne is a common inflammatory condition that mostly involves the face, chest and back. A number of different modalities had been employed for treating scars of which laser remains to be a pivotal choice. We aimed to compare the efficacy of topical timolol maleate 0.5% after fractional CO2 (AFCO2) laser versus fractional CO2 Laser alone for treatment of atrophic acne scars. A split-face comparative clinical experiment on 30 cases of atrophic post-acne scars that were treated on one side with ablative fractional CO2 laser followed by timolol application while with only ablative fractional CO2 laser on the other side. Following treatment, both sides demonstrated significant improvement with the laser + timolol treated side showing better improvement; yet not significantly higher than the laser only treated side. In conclusion, both topical timolol maleate 0.5% after fractional CO2 laser and fractional CO2 laser may achieve comparable significant improvement. The good safety profile, easy accessibility, low cost, and non-invasive nature merits the use of timolol in acne scars pending verification by larger sample reproduced and controlled trials.

Indexed as

Acne VulgarisLasers, GasAtrophyCarbon DioxideCicatrixHumansTimololTreatment OutcomeCarbon DioxideTimolol

Identifiers

PMID37296156
PMCPMC10256714
OpenAlexW4380089691

What OpenQuestion holds

Textmetadata
LicenceCC BY
Read underepoch 390

Registered trials

None linked

Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.