CO₂ Laser Popularity in Germany: A Five-Year Google Trends Analysis (2020-2025)

Area of Science:

• Dermatology
• Aesthetic Medicine
• Digital Health Trends

Background:

• Fractional carbon dioxide (CO₂) laser resurfacing is a common treatment for scars and photoaging.
• Growing public interest in minimally invasive aesthetic procedures is noted, influenced by social media and evolving beauty standards.
• Limited data exists on population-level attention to CO₂ laser treatments in Germany.

Purpose of the Study:

• To analyze the long-term trends and seasonal patterns of public information-seeking behavior related to fractional CO₂ laser treatments in Germany.
• To utilize Google Trends data from January 2020 to December 2025 for this analysis.

Main Methods:

• Retrieved monthly normalized search volume (NSV) for "CO2 laser" within the "Health" category from January 2020 to December 2025.
• Applied Seasonal-Trend decomposition using LOESS (STL) to separate long-term trends from seasonal variations.
• Used linear regression to assess the significance of the upward trend and evaluated seasonal component amplitude for pattern analysis.

Main Results:

• Public interest in CO₂ lasers showed a significant increase, with annual mean NSV rising from 15.0 in 2020 to 68.1 in 2025.
• A statistically significant monthly increase in search interest was observed (slope=0.87 NSV/month, P<.001).
• A robust seasonal pattern was identified, with search interest peaking in winter (January) and declining in summer (August).

Conclusions:

• Digital information-seeking for fractional CO₂ laser treatments in Germany increased by 354% over six years.
• Consistent seasonal peaks in winter suggest specific timing for public interest in aesthetic treatments.
• These temporal patterns offer valuable insights for educational messaging, patient management, and safety considerations in aesthetic medicine.