A comparative evaluation of diode laser ablation versus scalpel excision for management of oral leukoplakia

Background and Aim: Oral leukoplakia, a potentially malignant disorder with malignant transformation rate ranging from 0.6% to 20%, requires immediate attention. Therefore, for moderate to severe dysplasia, complete surgical removal is the treatment modality. This study aimed to evaluate two treatment modalities of oral leukoplakia using diode laser and scalpel surgery and to compare the outcome of both interventions regarding postoperative pain and functional disturbances. Materials and Methods: A total of 30 patients with oral leukoplakia were recruited and block randomization was done splitting into diode and scalpel groups. Patients were evaluated for pain and functional disturbances postoperatively using visual analog score (VAS) and Gorsky criteria, respectively, in the first 3 days and 1st, 2nd, and 4th weeks and periodically followed up for 4 years for recurrences. Results: The mean age was 38 years. The results showed a significant difference in diode group compared with scalpel group for postoperative pain assessed in VAS scale using paired “t-test” and functional disturbance using Chi-square test. None showed recurrence in the subsequent 4 years of follow-up among diode, whereas scalpel group showed recurrence in two patients. Conclusion: Complete resolution of the lesion with minimum patient discomfort was observed in patients treated with diode compared with scalpel, suggesting diode laser is an effective method over the conventional method.