Treatment of facial post-burn hyperpigmentation using micro-plasma radiofrequency technology.

Management of facial post-burn hyperpigmentation is a common and challenging problem for dermatologists and plastic surgeons. The recent development of micro-plasma radiofrequency technology, which allows precise and rapid treatment with controlled thermal injury, can be an effective treatment of post-burn hyperpigmentation. This study aimed to evaluate the effectiveness and complications of micro-plasma radiofrequency treatment of post-burn hyperpigmentation. The study included 35 patients with Fitzpatrick skin type III or IV and facial post-burn hyperpigmentation. Patients received three to five treatments at 8-week intervals. A roller tip was used with the power setting at 60-90 W, and 3-4 passes were made in different directions. The degree of improvement and complications were recorded. Improvement of hyperpigmentation was evaluated by patient self-assessment and by plastic surgeons who compared digital photographs taken before treatment and 2 months after the last treatment. The results showed that post-burn hyperpigmentation responded favorably to micro-plasma radiofrequency treatment with very few complications. The average pain score using a visual analog scale from 0 to 10 was 6.7 ± 0.7. After a series of treatments, 32 of the 35 patients had achieved a >51% improvement of their hyperpigmentation, and 3 patients had achieved a fair improvement. The mean score for improvement of hyperpigmentation was 4.28. Patient self-evaluations indicated good satisfaction with the cosmetic outcomes, and some softening of the scars. Micro-plasma radiofrequency technology is appropriate, effective, and safe for the treatment of facial post-burn hyperpigmentation, and provides a promising noninvasive treatment for superficial facial injuries.

Synergistic effect of dual interfacial modifications with room-temperature-grown epitaxial ZnO and adsorbed indoline dye for ZnO nanorod array/P3HT hybrid solar cell.

ZnO nanorod (NR)/poly(3-hexylthiophene) (P3HT) hybrid solar cells with interfacial modifications are investigated in this work. The ZnO NR arrays are modified with room-temperature (RT)-grown epitaxial ZnO shells or/and D149 dye molecules prior to the P3HT infiltration. A synergistic effect of the dual modifications on the efficiency of the ZnO NR/P3HT solar cell is observed. The open-circuit voltage and fill factor are considerable improved through the RT-grown ZnO and D149 modifications in sequence on the ZnO NR array, which brings about a 2-fold enhancement of the efficiency of the ZnO NR/P3HT solar cell. We suggested that the more suitable surface of RT-grown ZnO for D149 adsorption, the chemical compatibility of D149 and P3HT, and the elevated conduction band edge of the RT-grown ZnO/D149-modified ZnO NR array construct the superior interfacial morphology and energetics in the RT-grown ZnO/D149-modified ZnO NR/P3HT hybrid solar cell, resulting in the synergistic effect on the cell efficiency. An efficiency of 1.16% is obtained in the RT-grown ZnO/D149-modified ZnO NR/P3HT solar cell.

Visible to near-infrared light harvesting in Ag2S nanoparticles/ZnO nanowire array photoanodes.

Pronounced absorption in the visible-NIR range of 400-1300 nm is demonstrated in the Ag(2)S nanoparticles (NPs)/ZnO nanowire (NW) array. ZnO NW arrays are grown on indium tin oxide substrates using chemical bath deposition. The Ag(2)S NPs are sequentially formed on the ZnO NWs through sonochemical synthesis. Structural characterizations indicate the slight deconstruction of surface of ZnO NWs during Ag(2)S NPs formation. By employing polysulfide electrolyte, short-circuit current (J(sc)), open-circuit voltage and therefore the efficiency of the Ag(2)S NP-sensitized ZnO NW solar cell are improved with increasing the initial sulfur concentration in the sulfur-polysulfide electrolyte. The Ag(2)S NP-sensitized ZnO NW solar cell shows a conversion efficiency of 0.49% with a superior J(sc) of ~13.7 mA cm(-2) under AM 1.5 illumination at 100 mW cm(-2). Incident photon conversion efficiency measurements reveal that Ag(2)S NPs contribute to 33.4% and 65.2% of J(sc) in the wavelength ranges of 400-700 nm and 700-1300 nm, respectively.