Clinical Studies

The number of clinical studies is very limited. Trelles et al., in a small series of ten patients, have used red LED phototherapy (20 minutes, 96 J/cm2, 633 nm), after blepharo- plasty and laser ablative resurfacing. They observed that LED phototherapy cut the time for the resolution of side effects, and the healing time by half to one-third compared with con­tralateral unirradiated controls. However, Trelles et al. concluded that further studies were warranted with larger populations to confirm these findings [22].

In another study, Trelles et al. have evaluated Er:YAG ablation of plantar verrucae with red LED therapy to assist wound healing. Over 2 years, the author treated 121 plantar warts under local anesthesia in 58 patients with Er:YAG laser ablation, followed by red LED therapy to assist wound healing. (633 nm, 20 minutes, 96 J/cm2). LED therapy at the same parameters was repeated on postoperative days 2, 6, and 10. To the authors, the Er:YAG laser was ideally suited for precise and speedy ablation of plantar verrucae with minimal thermal damage to surrounding tissue, which, when coupled with visible red LED therapy, had given excellent, accelerated, and pain-free healing in these difficult-to-treat and slow – to-heal lesions, with very low recurrence rates. However, due to the absence of a control group, it is not possible to conclude whether these results could be attributed to the Er:YAG only or to the Er:YAG in combination to the LED therapy [23].

Updated: September 27, 2015 — 1:30 am