Light Phototherapy Research Articles

Successful Treatment of CD30+Lymphomatoid Papulosis using a 308-nm Excimer Light

We describe a 61-year-old Japanese patient with Lymphomatoid papulosis (LYP) successfully archived complete remission, using a 308-nm Excimer light. Interestingly, immunohistochemical staining revealed that CD30+ anaplastic tumor cells were surrounded by CD163+ macrophages and CCL18 producing cells, both of which were reported to correlate with the prognosis of CTCL. Our present study sheds light on the possible pathogenesis of LYP and the possibility of a 308-nm Excimer light phototherapy for LYP.

Treatment of Generalised Vitiligo with Tacrolimus 0.1% Ointment vs. UVB Intense Pulsed Light Phototherapy: A Pilot Study

Treatment of Generalised Vitiligo with Tacrolimus 0.1% Ointment vs. UVB Intense Pulsed Light Phototherapy: A Pilot Study

Fluorescence Excitation Spectrum of Bilirubin in Blood: A Model for the Action Spectrum for Phototherapy of Neonatal Jaundice

A recent report (Lamola et al. 2013 Pediatric Research, 74, 54-60) presents a semiempirical model for facile calculation of an action spectrum for bilirubin photochemistry in vivo using the most current knowledge of the optics of neonatal skin. The calculations indicate that competition for phototherapy light by hemoglobin in the skin is the predominant factor that defines the spectrum of light absorbed by bilirubin. If the latter is correct, a valid physical analog of the calculated spectrum is the excitation spectrum of bilirubin in blood. The fluorescence excitation spectrum was recorded and, indeed, found to be very similar to the calculated spectrum. Both spectra exhibit maxima near 476 nm and widths at half height of about 50 nm. This result supports the conclusion that light between 460 and 490 nm is most effective for phototherapy of neonatal jaundice.

Consider acne severity and potential risks when treating acne vulgaris in pregnant and breastfeeding women

Acne vulgaris is a common skin condition in pregnant women. The choice of medication depends on the severity of the acne and the potential risks of the treatment. As a general rule, topical agents are safer than oral agents and should be the first choice, with oral agents and/or blue–violet or red light phototherapy considered as second-line treatments. The use of hormonal therapies, oral and topical retinoids and certain antibacterials should be avoided.

Narrowband Ultraviolet B Light in Langerhans Cell Histiocytosis: A Case Report

Langerhans cell histiocytosis (LCH) (previously called eosinophilic granuloma, Hand-Schüller-Christian syndrome, Letterer-Siwe disease, and Hashimoto-Pritzker disease) is a rare, heterogeneous disorder with highly variable presentation. LCH commonly affects the skin, as well as internal organs. Because the skin lesions appear benign, and LCH is unfamiliar to most physicians, diagnosis is often delayed. Treatment is controversial, with further clinical study needed. For persons with extensive, skin-limited disease, the existing topical therapies are impractical. We present a child with cutaneous LCH lesions that responded to ultraviolet light phototherapy with minimal adverse effects or patient discomfort.

Antimicrobial Blue Light: An Emerging Alternative to Antibiotics

Antimicrobial Blue Light: An Emerging Alternative to Antibiotics

What are the effects of spending time outdoors in daylight on the physical health of older people and family carers: a systematic review protocol

Review question/objective The overall objective of this research is to undertake a systematic review of the effects of spending time outdoors in daylight on the physical health of older adults and family carers. The specific questions to be addressed are: Which aspects of physical health are affected by spending time outdoors in daylight for older adults and family carers? To what extent is spending time outdoors in daylight effective for improving aspects of physical health in older adults and family carers? Inclusion criteria Types of participants This review will consider studies that include all older adults aged 55 years or more, including those living in a community setting or a residential aged care facility. In addition, this review will consider family carers, who are defined as unpaid relatives or friends of an older person, who help that individual with their activities of daily living. No further inclusion criteria will be applied. Types of intervention(s)/phenomena of interest The intervention or phenomenon of interest is spending time outdoors in daylight. ‘Outdoors in daylight’ is a broad term that encompasses all outdoor environments where participants are exposed, directly or indirectly, to daylight in a natural setting while participating in any type of outdoor activity. For our review, the definition of outdoor activity is simply ‘being outdoors’ in order to capture all types of engagement with outdoor environments. Studies will be excluded if they utilise artificial ‘bright’ light sources or modify the indoor environment to improve light exposure. An absence of activity or indoors activity with no exposure to daylight will be used as a comparator. Types of outcomes This review will consider studies that include objective and/ or subjective measures of the following outcomes: Older adults: • physical health: o bio-makers: - melatonin levels. - serotonin levels; and - vitamin D levels; o functional ability; o physical activity levels; and o sleep patterns; Family carer health: o physical health.

Treatment of Acne Vulgaris During Pregnancy and Lactation

Acne vulgaris is a common problem encountered by pregnant and lactating women. Unfortunately, in clinical practice, treatment is often not optimized as a result of the lack of safety data and unified recommendations on the use of the various anti-acne therapies. In this narrative review, current data on their safety is summarized. We recommend the use of topical medications as first-line treatment for acne vulgaris in pregnant and lactating women. These include antibiotics (erythromycin, clindamycin, metronidazole and dapsone), benzoyl peroxide, azelaic acid and salicylic acid. Oral agents and/or light-based therapy may be considered as second-line treatment. The former consists of oral macrolides (erythromycin and azithromycin), cephalexin or zinc compounds. Blue-violet or red light phototherapy may be used as monotherapy or in addition to topical and/or oral therapies. Hormonal therapy, antibiotics consisting of tetracyclines, co-trimoxazole and fluoroquinolones, and both oral and topical retinoids should be avoided.

Successful treatment of scleredema diabeticorum by combining local psoralen plus ultraviolet A light phototherapy and colchicine

Successful treatment of scleredema diabeticorum by combining local psoralen plus ultraviolet A light phototherapy and colchicine

A Preliminary Study of the Safety of Red Light Phototherapy of Tissues Harboring Cancer

Red light phototherapy is known to stimulate cell proliferation in wound healing. This study investigated whether low-level light therapy (LLLT) would promote tumor growth when pre-existing malignancy is present. LLLT has been increasingly used for numerous conditions, but its use in cancer patients, including the treatment of lymphedema or various unrelated comorbidities, has been withheld by practitioners because of the fear that LLLT might result in initiation or promotion of metastatic lesions or new primary tumors. There has been little scientific study of oncologic outcomes after use of LLLT in cancer patients. A standard SKH mouse nonmelanoma UV-induced skin cancer model was used after visible squamous cell carcinomas were present, to study the effects of LLLT on tumor growth. The red light group (n=8) received automated full body 670 nm LLLT delivered twice a day at 5 J/cm(2) using an LED source. The control group (n=8) was handled similarly, but did not receive LLLT. Measurements on 330 tumors were conducted for 37 consecutive days, while the animals received daily LLLT. Daily tumor measurements demonstrated no measurable effect of LLLT on tumor growth. This experiment suggests that LLLT at these parameters may be safe even when malignant lesions are present. Further studies on the effects of photoirradiation on neoplasms are warranted.

Experience with bath-psoralen plus ultraviolet A light phototherapy for granuloma annulare in 8 patients

Experience with bath-psoralen plus ultraviolet A light phototherapy for granuloma annulare in 8 patients

Brief morning light treatment for sleep/wake disturbances in older memory-impaired individuals and their caregivers

Scheduled exposure to bright light (phototherapy) has been used, with varying degrees of success, to treat sleep disruption in older individuals. Most of these studies have been done in institutional settings and have used several hours of daily light exposure. Such a regimen in the home setting may be untenable, especially when the individual with the sleep disruption has memory impairment and is being cared for by a family member. As such, we examined the effectiveness of a "user-friendly" phototherapy protocol that would be readily usable in the home environment. We exposed a group of 54 older caregiver/care recipient dyads, in which the care recipient had memory impairment, to two weeks of morning bright light phototherapy. Dyads were exposed to either bright white (∼4200 lux) or dim red (∼90 lux) light for 30 min every day, starting within 30 min of rising. All subjects also received sleep hygiene therapy. Objective (actigraphy) and subjective measures of sleep and mood were obtained at baseline and at the end of the two weeks of phototherapy. In care recipients, actigraphy- and log-determined time in bed and total sleep time declined in the active condition (p<0.05, ANOVA); there was no corresponding change in subjective insomnia symptoms (p's>0.37, ANOVA). The decrease in the time in bed was associated with an earlier out of bed time in the morning (p<0.001, Pearson correlation). The decrease in the total sleep time was associated with a decrease in sleep efficiency (p<0.001, Pearson correlation) and an increase in wake after sleep onset (p<0.001, Pearson correlation). In caregivers, there were no differential changes in actigraphic measures of sleep (p's>0.05, ANOVA). Actigraphy-measured wake after sleep onset and sleep efficiency did, however, improve in both conditions, as did sleepiness, insomnia symptoms, and depressive symptomatology (p's<0.05, ANOVA). Exposure to this regimen of phototherapy diminished sleep in older individuals with memory impairments. Their caregivers, however, experienced an improvement in sleep and mood that appeared independent of the phototherapy and likely due to participation in this protocol or the sleep hygiene therapy.

Grover disease may result from the impairment of keratinocytic cholinergic receptors

To the Editor: Grover disease is an eruption of intraepidermal acantholysis presenting as crusted reddened papules; it is usually found on the trunk of middle aged patients, with a male to female ratio of 2:1. The disease may be transient or persistent. Although the onset of Grover disease often appears to be spontaneous, the expression of Grover disease has been associated with a multitude of factors, including sun exposure, winter time, interleukin-4 administration, heat or sweat, ionizing radiation, psoralen plus ultraviolet A light phototherapy, chemotherapy, and chronic renal failure.

Blue-green light phototherapy for preterm jaundice

Objective To evaluate the efficacy of blue-green light phototherapy for jaundice in preterm newborns.Methods Total 124 preterm newborns with birth-weight below 2000 g were included in this study.Infants in group A (gestation age ≤32 weeks or/and instability,n =72) were treated with bluegreen light (group A1 ) or with single side blue light (group A2) randomly.Infants with gestation age ＞32weeks or/and stability (n =52) were also treated with blue-green light (group B1 ) or with single side blue light ( group B2) randomly.Peak levels of serum bilirubin ( PSB),the withdrawal time of jaundice and the duration of phototherapy were compared between groups.Results Group A:PSB of groupAl was lower than that of groupA2 [ (219 ± 31 ) μmol/L vs.( 257 ± 39 ) μ mol/L,P ＜ 0.01 ].The withdrawal time of jaundice group Al was earlier than that of group A2 [ ( 10.3 ±3.0) d vs.( 16.2 ±4.2) d,P ＜0.01 ].The duration of phototherapy of groupA1 was shorter than that of group A2 [ (87 ±34) h vs.(23 ±49) h,P ＜0.01 ].Group B:There were no differences in PSB and withdrawal time of jaundice between two subgroups ( P ＞0.05).The duration of phototherapy of groupB1 was shorter than that of group B2 [ (59 ±23) h vs.(73 ±74) h,P ＜ 0.05 ].Conclusion Blue-green light phototherapy is more effective than single side of blue light in treatment of jaundice in preterm newborns. Key words: Jaundice,neonatal; Phototherapy ; Treatment outcome

Neonatal Blue Light Phototherapy and Melanocytic Nevi: A Twin Study

Neonatal blue light phototherapy (NBLP) has been widely and successfully used for the treatment of neonatal jaundice to reduce the plasma concentration of bilirubin and, hence, to prevent kernicterus. Only a few and controversial data are available in the literature as to how NBLP influences melanocytic nevus development. Our goal was to conduct a twin study with the aim of better understanding the role of NBLP in melanocytic nevus development. We also investigated the roles of other environmental and constitutional factors in nevus formation. Fifty-nine monozygotic and dizygotic twins were included in this cross-sectional study. One of the twin members received NBLP, and the other did not. A whole-body skin examination was performed to determine the density of melanocytic skin lesions. The prevalence of benign pigmented uveal lesions was evaluated during a detailed ophthalmologic examination. A standardized questionnaire was used to assess data relating to constitutional, sun-exposure, and other variables. To search for possible gene-environmental interactions involved in the appearance of pigmented lesions, the melanocortin 1 receptor variants and the I439V polymorphism of histidine ammonia-lyase genes were also determined in the enrolled twins. NBLP was associated with a significantly higher prevalence of both cutaneous and uveal melanocytic lesions. No association was found between the examined gene polymorphisms and the number of pigmented alterations in the examined study group. Our data suggest that NBLP could well be a risk factor for melanocytic nevus development. Phototherapy with blue-light lamps is a standard and essential therapeutic modality in neonatal care; therefore, additional in vivo and in vitro studies are necessary to establish its potential long-term adverse effects.

Prospective Randomized Controlled Study Comparing Low-Cost LED and Conventional Phototherapy for Treatment of Neonatal Hyperbilirubinemia

Our objective was to carry out a prospective, randomized, single-blind study to evaluate whether light emitting diode (LED) phototherapy using a low-cost set of lights is as effective as conventional phototherapy in treating hyperbilirubinemia in neonates. The study included 45 pre-term neonates requiring phototherapy as per American Academy of Pediatrics guidelines; participants were randomized to receive phototherapy using LED-based lights, conventional fluorescent blue lights or conventional halogen lights. There were no statistically significant differences in the average bilirubin levels at the onset, at the maximum and at the end of treatment, nor in the duration of phototherapy treatment and the rate of decrease in bilirubin levels in the neonates receiving conventional fluorescent blue light, conventional halogen light and LED phototherapy. (Differences were considered significant at p < 0.05). The average rate of decrease of bilirubin levels was 0.047 ± 0.037 mg dl(-1) h(-1), 0.055 ± 0.056 mg dl(-1) h(-1) and 0.057 ± 0.045 mg dl(-1) h(-1) in the groups receiving conventional fluorescent blue light, conventional halogen light and LED phototherapy, respectively. The average duration of phototherapy treatment in the three groups was 108.8 ± 85.9 h, 92.8 ± 38.1 h, 110.4 ± 42.6 h, respectively. In this pilot study, LED phototherapy using a simple, low-cost set of lights was as effective as conventional phototherapy in the treatment of neonatal hyperbilirubinemia. LED phototherapy lights that deliver 30-40 µW cm(-2 )nm(-1) can be assembled in small quantities for <US$ 100 each using off-the-shelf parts; such lights may enable phototherapy to be safely and reliably delivered in low-resource settings.

Photobiomodulation and Cancer and Other Musings

Photomedicine and Laser SurgeryVol. 29, No. 1 EditorialPhotobiomodulation and Cancer and Other MusingsRaymond J. LanzafameRaymond J. LanzafameSearch for more papers by this authorPublished Online:10 Jan 2011https://doi.org/10.1089/pho.2011.9922AboutSectionsView articleView Full TextPDF/EPUB ToolsPermissionsDownload CitationsTrack CitationsAdd to favorites Back To Publication ShareShare onFacebookTwitterLinked InRedditEmail View article"Photobiomodulation and Cancer and Other Musings." , 29(1), pp. 3–4FiguresReferencesRelatedDetailsCited byLow-level laser light in the rehabilitation of cancer patients22 January 2022 | Laser Medicine, Vol. 25, No. 3In vitro anti-tumor effect of high-fluence low-power laser light on apoptosis of human colorectal cancer cells28 May 2020 | Lasers in Medical Science, Vol. 36, No. 3Contraindications, Special Considerations, and Precautions25 March 2017A study of the impacts of low-intensity light irradiation in the red (λmax = 635 nm) and green (λmax = 520 nm) ranges on the proliferative activity and gene expression profiles of MNNG/hos cells and human fetal fibroblasts29 April 2017 | Biophysics, Vol. 62, No. 1“Quantum Leap” in Photobiomodulation Therapy Ushers in a New Generation of Light-Based Treatments for Cancer and Other Complex Diseases: Perspective and Mini-Review8 March 2016 | Photomedicine and Laser Surgery, Vol. 34, No. 3Could the biological robustness of low level laser therapy (Photobiomodulation) impact its use in the management of mucositis in head and neck cancer patientsOral Oncology, Vol. 54Laser photobiomodulation: A new promising player for the multi-hallmark treatment of advanced cancer4 September 2013 | International Journal of Cancer Therapy and OncologyConcurrence of Emerging Developments in Photobiomodulation and Cancer1 November 2012 | Photomedicine and Laser Surgery, Vol. 30, No. 11A Preliminary Study of the Safety of Red Light Phototherapy of Tissues Harboring Cancer20 August 2012 | Photomedicine and Laser Surgery, Vol. 30, No. 9 Volume 29Issue 1Jan 2011 InformationCopyright 2011, Mary Ann Liebert, Inc.To cite this article:Raymond J. Lanzafame.Photobiomodulation and Cancer and Other Musings.Photomedicine and Laser Surgery.Jan 2011.3-4.http://doi.org/10.1089/pho.2011.9922Published in Volume: 29 Issue 1: January 10, 2011PDF download

Neonatal Phototherapy Increases Development of Pigmented Nevi

Neonatal blue light phototherapy (NBLP) is widely used to treat hyperbilirubinemia, effectively preventing kernicterus. Data regarding long-term safety of NBLP are few and conflicting. Investigators in Hungary performed a retrospective, cross-sectional, twin study to study the role of NBLP and other environmental factors in the development of pigmented nevi. The study included 58 pairs of twins …

Full‐spectrum light phototherapy for atopic dermatitis

Atopic dermatitis (AD) is a chronic skin disease resulting in a profound deterioration in quality of life. The FSL® is a newly developed phototherapy device generating full-spectrum light (FSL) with a continuous wavelength (320-5000 nm). This study aimed to evaluate the efficacy and safety of FSL® phototherapy in AD. We enrolled 38 patients with moderate to severe AD in this open, randomized, controlled, prospective study. In the FSL-irradiated group (20 patients), irradiation was conducted twice per week for 4 consecutive weeks. In the control group (18 patients), only emollient application was allowed. SCORing Atopic Dermatis (SCORAD) values were obtained at baseline, week 4 and 8. Patients were asked to give subjective assessments of improvement and laboratory tests including serum eosinophil counts, ECP levels, IgE levels and 22 cytokine levels were performed. In the FSL-irradiated group, the mean SCORAD value decreased significantly after 4 weeks of phototherapy and remained reduced for a further 4 weeks after the cessation of treatment. In the control group, the mean SCORAD value did not change significantly over the study period. Patients' subjective assessments indicated good to excellent responses in 75% of the FSL-irradiated group, by contrast with 50% of the control group. The mean values for serum eosinophil counts, IL-4 and IL-5 levels decreased significantly after FLS phototherapy. No serious adverse effects were reported. In this study, we showed that FSL® phototherapy can be an effective and safe treatment option in AD.

Comparative study of the bactericidal effects of 5-aminolevulinic acid with blue and red light on Propionibacterium acnes

Propionibacterium acnes naturally produces endogenous porphyrins that are composed of coproporphyrin III (CPIII) and protoporphyrin IX (PpIX). Red light alone and photodynamic therapy (PDT) improve acne vulgaris clinically, but there remains a paucity of quantitative data that directly examine the bactericidal effects that result from PDT on P. acnes itself in vitro. The purpose of this study was to measure the difference of bactericidal effects of 5-aminolevulinic acid (ALA)-PDT with red and blue light on P. acnes. P. acnes were cultured under anaerobic conditions and divided into two groups (ALA-treated group and control group), and were then illuminated with blue (415 nm) and red (635 nm) lights using a light-emitting diode (LED). The cultured P. acnes were killed with both blue and red LED light illumination. The efficacy increased with larger doses of light and a greater number of consecutive illuminations. We demonstrated that red light phototherapy was less effective for the eradication of P. acnes than blue light phototherapy without the addition of ALA. However, pretreatment with ALA could enhance markedly the efficacy of red light phototherapy.