"Red Light......Green Light"
Posted on 11/22/2024 9:20:30 PM PST by ConservativeMind
A study has concluded that the use of monochromatic infrared light in conjunction with conventional physical therapy is a promising alternative for the treatment of peripheral diabetic neuropathy, a type of nerve damage that most often affects the legs and feet, and one of the most frequent, insidious and incapacitating complications of diabetes.
Pharmacological treatment is usual in this case, but other therapeutic possibilities can help relieve the discomfort without the side effects caused by drugs, such as dry mouth, postural hypotension and urinary retention.
"The lives and functionality of people with diabetes are so severely damaged by the problem that we set out to develop a novel approach. We eventually decided to study photobiomodulation as an alternative to combat the pain caused by diabetic neuropathy," Kusahara said.
A group of 144 patients with peripheral diabetic neuropathy who attended public health clinics in São Paulo state, took part in the study.
The participants were divided randomly into two subgroups. One was treated with 890 nanometer monochromatic infrared light associated with physical therapy involving electrotherapy and kinesiotherapy (treatment by passive and active muscular movements). The other was a control group, which received the same physical therapy without the light treatment.
Both groups were given 18 treatment sessions and followed up for ten weeks. Pain was evaluated four times using instruments and scales validated for this purpose.
"The results of the evaluations performed 30 days and six weeks after the end of the intervention showed that both pain and sleep quality improved for the volunteers submitted to light application and physical therapy, especially in the case of people with intense pain," Kusahara said.
The researchers believe the treatment can be used right away, in various clinical contexts, including outpatient units, primary care facilities, and specialized pain management centers.
(Excerpt) Read more at medicalxpress.com ...
890 nm red light therapy is available today. Some are on sale for Black Friday events, even today.
Red light @ 890 nm?
“Roxanne...”
I would buy a red light wand if it would.
Ping
Usually, the ads seem have red light aimed at their face. I don’t know if they would be putting it facing towards their legs. More specificity would be helpful.
I have idiopathic neuropathy and belong to a few groups that have people in them that say it works.
I may give it a try because this burning and pain is getting so unbearable!
Red light therapy devices should be researched carefully before purchasing them.
Apparently some are useless and do not provide the wavelengths stated.
My sister has bad knees and her chiropractor did RLT on her knees and she says they’re much better now. And seeing the difference between how difficult it was for her to walk before and now, I believe it.
Safety assessment of near infrared light emitting diodes for diffuse optical measurements
Snip:
Abstract
Background
"Near infrared (NIR) light has been used widely to monitor important hemodynamic parameters in tissue non-invasively. Pulse oximetry, near infrared spectroscopy, and diffuse optical tomography are examples of such NIR light-based applications. These and other similar applications employ either lasers or light emitting diodes (LED) as the source of the NIR light. Although the hazards of laser sources have been addressed in regulations, the risk of LED sources in such applications is still unknown.
"Results
"Elevations in skin temperature up to 10°C have been observed. The effect of radiated heat due to NIR absorption is low – less than 0.5°C – since emitted light power is comparable to the NIR part of sunlight. The conducted heat due to semiconductor junction of the LED can cause temperature increases up to 9°C. It has been shown that adjusting operational parameters by amplitude modulating or time multiplexing the LED decreases the temperature increase of the skin significantly.
Conclusion
In this study, we demonstrate that the major risk source of the LED in direct contact with skin is the conducted heat of the LED semiconductor junction, which may cause serious skin burns. Adjusting operational parameters by amplitude modulating or time multiplexing the LED can keep the LED within safe temperature ranges." I do have a NIR device that I use.
Review
Image and this discussion regarding NIR and Eye Safety was taken from:
IR Illumination and Eye Safety
The PhD author is looking at risk for eye damage on IR eye recognition and IR floodlights;
"To help the cameras, vendors have started providing IR floodlights which provide a LOT of IR illumination. But no one has ever really examined these to check whether they are safe, so that’s what we are going to do today."
...Snip....
"The difference between these two types of LEDs in terms of eye safety will become apparent later. When we consider NIR eye damage, there are a few key things to remember:
Our pupils will not contract to protect us from intense NIR light.
If our eyes are damaged, we won’t be aware it is happening.
Damage is actually a biological/chemical process that will take a long time to manifest.
"That last bullet is the most scary to me. If you want to see real-life examples of this check out this link (not for the squeamish) that shows examples of “Glassblower’s Cataract.” Glassblowers in the past were subject to massive amounts of IR light which resulted in damage that accumulated over time. We certainly want to avoid anything like that."
None of us are diabetic and they don't have a clue as to where it comes from. The only thing they can do is drug you and who wants to live in a perpetual fog?
I purchased an LED Visible red and Near IR lite to use in a sauna and I can feel the difference after using it. (A bit tired like I have exercised, which is what it is supposed to do.) I sometimes will use it while riding my standing cycle. (No, just have one light and not an array in a closed space.)
Other studies disagree https://diabetesjournals.org/care/article/31/2/316/25228/Does-Anodyne-Light-Therapy-Improve-Peripheral
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