Modern research

Therapy with light promotes wound healing

Light therapy for diseases such as wound healing or Alzheimer's.(Bild: MORITZ NACHTSCHATT)

Light has an influence on the body's biological functions. In healthy doses and at the right wavelength, it can relieve pain and promote wound healing. This has now been investigated by a team from the Ludwig Boltzmann Institute (LBI) for Traumatology in Vienna in diabetes patients. But there are also initial approaches against Alzheimer's disease.

Ten percent of the population suffer from diabetes and often have slowed or completely absent wound healing - due to persistent hyperglycemia of the body.

"The wounds of those affected were treated with red, green and blue light, among other things, as part of our study. The results show a clear trend: treatments with green light already achieved small improvements in wound healing, while red light can bring about significantly faster wound closure. With both light colors, we have seen that they promote the formation of tiny blood vessels in the area surrounding the wound. Red light penetrates the tissue particularly well, which explains the significantly better effect," says Dr. Peter Dungel, pleased with the results.

Light can increase the concentration of adenosine triphosphate (ATP, energy carrier in cells) and thus increase the energy level in the body to carry out biochemical reactions.

First results against Alzheimer's disease
The aim is to research light as a therapeutic option for other diseases in the future, such as Alzheimer's disease. In a recent publication, the LBI for Traumatology has investigated this in more detail on the basis of existing research results: The USA in particular already has clinical studies on light and Alzheimer's, which showed that patients in the light group had improved short-term memory as well as better results in the clock test - a standard test for dementia - compared to the control group.

"In one particularly impressive study, light was delivered to the cerebral arteries of patients via catheter, who then showed, among other things, a recovery of their cognitive abilities," says Dr. Dungel.

Nevertheless, he cautions: "At the moment, any treatment successes in Alzheimer's have only been demonstrated with a regular form of therapy. So there is still room for improvement, but the path seems promising. We at the LBI for Traumatology are optimistic that we will be able to research further long-term successful light therapy methods in the future."