Phototherapy- Acne Treatment Information
Phototherapy is generally administered at home. The most commonly used phototherapy equipment is a portable lighting device known as a light box. The box may be mounted upright to a wall, or slanted downwards towards a table. The patient sits in front of the box for a prescribed period of time (anywhere from 15 minutes to several hours). Some patients with SAD undergo phototherapy sessions two or three times a day, others only once. The time of day and number of times treatment is administered depend on the physical needs and lifestyle of the individual patient.
Phototherapy Treatment
Light therapy can reduce the amount of bacterial activity and inflammatory activity in the skin. Porphyrins are natural products of p acnes, the bacteria most commonly found in acne lesions. Exposure of the bacteria to blue light (405-420nm) causes the peroxidation and subsequent killing of bacteria. A minority of patients do not respond to this therapy. A low-fluenced pulsed-dye laser appears to be an effective treatment for inflammatory acne and can result in reduction of inflammation for up to twelve weeks after a single treatment. Adding near infra red light, promotes circulation and oxygenation of the tissue to accelerate healing. Light therapy can be boosted with a topical medication called Levulan ™, althought there is a greater likelihood of significant acne flaring, the clearing of inflammatory acne is overall accomplished more quickly. Acne scarring is treated with the 1064 laser.
Acne vulgaris is a common dermatosis affecting 80% of the population. To date, different treatments have been used to manage this condition. Antibacterials and retinoids are currently the mainstay of treatment for acne, but their success rate varies. Phototherapy is emerging as an alternative option to treat acne vulgaris.Studies examining the role of different wavelengths and methods of light treatment have shown that phototherapy with visible light, specifically blue light, has a marked effect on inflammatory acne lesions and seems sufficient for the treatment of acne. In addition, the combination of blue-red light radiation seems to be superior to blue light alone, with minimal adverse effects. Photodynamic therapy has also been used, even in nodular and cystic acne, and had excellent therapeutic outcomes, although with significant adverse effects.
Although Acne Phototherapy can be used by virtually anyone suffering from acne, it is predominantly used by people between the ages of 13 to 40 years of age, because this age group is the most affected by acne. If you are considering this treatment, speak to a skin care specialist who can recommend the best course of action. Generally, one cycle of this therapy consists of 8 treatments, each treatment lasting around 30 minutes.
The purpose of this study was to investigate the efficacy of phototherapy with a newly-developed 1450-nm diode laser in patients with mild to moderate acne. An open study was performed in acne patients who were treated up to five times with a two week interval. Acne lesions were reduced by 63%. Only one patient discontinued treatment due to vesicle formation as an adverse effect. Phototherapy using this diode laser source was effective and well tolerated in acne patients, suggesting that this phototherapy may be a new modality for the treatment of acne.
You’ll have to remove any make-up or sunblock. The ALA cream will then be applied. After 30 minutes you’ll be asked to wear some safety goggles and the light will be positioned close to your face. The treatment lasts 8 minutes and you may feel a tingling sensation during the treatment.
Dose Dependence Human Studies
Skin sites (2.5 cm in diameter) of the upper back of 12 normal human volunteers with mild to moderate acne will be exposed to 0.1, 0.25 and 0.5 of an MED (minimum erythema dose) of 335 nm radiation, three times a week. The MED will be first determined for each volunteer. Confocal microscopy images will be obtained from control and exposed sites on a weekly basis. At the end of the treatment period 3 nm biopsies will be taken from treated and control sites. Histological staining will include H&E as well as colloidal iron for evaluating changes induced to the structural matrix. The exposed sites will be followed up for up to 2 months to evaluate recovery of the sebaceous glands.
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