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Curing Acne with Blue Light
2006-03-21
Curing Acne with Blue Light
Dear Dr. Prabhu: My teenage daughter suffers from severe acne. Not only is it a medical condition, it also affects her self esteem and social life. What causes this terrible condition?
Answer: Common misconceptions are that acne is caused by a bad diet or poor hygiene. Although the exact cause of acne is not known, we do know that heredity and hormones are behind most forms or acne. Scrubbing your face five times a day or staying away from chocolate will not change your predisposition to this unsightly, sometimes painful and socially embarrassing skin problem. Acne can be controlled, and should be, so that severe or permanent scarring does not occur.
That being said, the progress of the disease is quite straight forward. Just beneath the surface of the skin, hundreds of tiny glands called sebaceous glands collect and excrete sebum, an oily substance that keeps the skin healthy. In patients with acne, the tiny pathway for the sebum to escape becomes clogged, allowing a bacterium called p. acnes to grow inside. Soon, the area swells up, and a pimple is formed on the skin.
At some time during our lives, 85% of us will be affected by Acne Vulgaris, the most common form of acne. Although thought of as a condition that afflicts teenagers, 20% of the people who will develop acne are adults. It is more common in males than in females during adolescence, but the trend reverses with age with women more likely to be affected by it during adulthood.
Question: What kinds of treatments are available?
Answer: Gentle cleansing of the skin and using acne specific lotions are good methods for stopping the acne cycle, especially for those with excessively oily skin. As well, doctors can prescribe oral medications to combat more sever cases. However, one method that is gaining immense popularity is the use of Blue Light Photodynamic Therapy.
Question: What is Blue Light Photodynamic Therapy?
Answer: Blue Light, which at 417nanmeters, is outside the ultraviolet range, is very effective in treating acne vulgaris. Blue Light activates photosensitizers within the P. acnes bacteria. This creates a toxic bacteriocidal environment in the sebaceous gland that inhibits the formation of acne lesions while allowing those present to heal and disappear.
In addition to the use of Blue Light to treat acne, a unique Photodynamic Therapy combines Blue Light and a topical photosensitizer, Levulan, to provide a powerful one-two punch that not only clears acne lesions but may be one of the first treatments to offer long term results. When Levulan (aminolevulinic acid), a substance that occurs naturally in the body, is exposed to Blue Light illumination singlet oxygen is produced which specifically destroys the damaged and unhealthy cells of acne vulgaris.
Question: How safe is this treatment?
The treatments are very safe, not hot, and not painful and there are no side effects. The Blue Light is exposed to your face as you sit close to the light source for a short period of time. These sessions take place once or twice a week in 30 minute sessions. Generally, the treatments may last four or five weeks, after which time the Blue Light will control your acne or clear it up for a long period of time. This therapy is also currently approved for use in treating precancerous skin conditions associated with sun damage. Patients are advised to use a sun block for at least 24 hours after treatment while avoiding sun exposure.
Dr. Vilas PrabhuMD is the Medical Director of Aesthetic Solutions Incorporated, in Kelowna.
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