For the next three months, I will be talking about different treatments we use on pets based on using light. Many folks are already aware that we use a powerful laser in place of scalpels for our surgeries. We also use lower power lasers to treat injuries and chronic diseases like arthritis. In this article, I’ll be talking about a newer therapy called photobiomodulation using LED light therapy. It is a treatment that has been researched by NASA since the 1990’s to help astronauts who cannot be exposed to the unfiltered solar rays while in space. With this new treatment option, complicated wounds and skin conditions would take several months to heal can now be successfully treated in a matter of weeks.
We know that light absorption by healthy skin plays a big role in general health of the body, such as creation of active vitamin D. Light also provides the cells of the body with energy to maintain healthy tissue and repair damage. Unlike a laser which uses a single color of light and is meant to penetrate deeply, LED therapy uses many colors of light across the spectrum that will penetrate to different levels of the skin while stimulating many different biological systems. Blue light treats the uppermost layer of the skin and helps in destroying harmful bacteria on the surface. Green light targets the cells in the shallow skin that are in charge of growing new skin cells and connecting them together. Yellow light will target the blood vessels in the deeper parts of the skin to decrease inflammation. Red light penetrates the deepest layers of the skin to also help decrease inflammation and produce increased levels of collagen to strengthen the skin.
While full-light-spectrum LED lights are available to help maintain healthy skin, especially in parts of the world with poor sunlight, they lack the power to penetrate damaged skin. Newer, more-powerful LED lights have become available that could make treatment quicker and better but have lacked the ability to reach these different color ranges. More recently, a special topical gel was developed that, when applied to the skin before the light is used, will split the light into the various colors like a prism making a rainbow.
Thus far, this therapy has been used on severe wounds, chronic skin conditions, non-healing injuries, superficial infections like acne, and deep infections. As it is not a laser, there is little chance of damage to the skin or eyes, so minimal protection is required for the pet or the owners should they choose to watch the treatment. Depending on the severity of in damage, we can treat a 5 inch diameter area of skin between 2-6 minutes. The results have been amazing and our pets been much happier as a result. If you pet has a chronic skin condition, reach out to your veterinarian to see if this may be an option for you.