Topical Egg yolk Oil and post-Laser recovery in atrophic acne scars: a retrospective propensity score-matched study...

Prolonged epidermal recovery frequently complicates fractional carbon dioxide (CO₂) laser therapy for atrophic acne scars. This study aims to evaluate the potential clinical utility of topical egg yolk oil (EYO) in post-laser wound management using machine learning and interpretability analyses.

A propensity score-matched retrospective cohort of 324 patients was established. Clinical metrics, including wound healing time and ECCA scar scores, were extracted. Four machine learning models were developed to predict optimal clinical responses (ECCA reduction >= 30%), followed by SHapley Additive exPlanations (SHAP) analysis to explore non-linear feature associations.

The EYO group exhibited accelerated wound healing (5.5 vs. 8.5 days, P < 0.001) and superior 2-month ECCA reduction rates compared to the control group. The Random Forest model demonstrated robust predictive performance with an AUC of 0.889. SHAP analysis suggested a potential non-linear association, indicating that prolonged healing times might negatively correlate with optimal scar remodeling, while EYO intervention appeared to modulate the adverse effects of higher laser energy.

Topical EYO may accelerate early epidermal repair and optimize medium-term aesthetic outcomes in laser-treated acne scars.