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William H. Beeson, MD, Indianapolis, Ind, and W. Russell Ries, MD, Nashville, Tenn, addressed the Southern Section meeting of the American Academy of Facial Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery in White Sulfur Springs, WVa, on January 11, 1990, concerning the use of the tunable pulseddye laser for vascular lesions of the skin. They reported that this was a specially developed laser powered by a flash lamp using fiberoptic cables to a handpiece. Ideally, a laser used to treat skin lesions would have properties that would cause damage to the intimal layers of the vessel and yet spare the dermis and epidermis. The selective photothermolysis properties of this laser were developed to be wavelength specific and directed at the oxyhemoglobin target. The wavelength most appropriate was 585 nm, and it appeared that the optimal duration was 300 to 400 milliseconds with a 5-mm-diameter spot size. They reported that this pulsed-dye laser worked best