Wound Healing • Burns • Surgery • Ulcers

BIOPTRON Light Therapy can be used as complementary therapy for wound healing in the following indications:

• Wound healing after trauma (injuries)

• Burns

• Grafting

• Wound healing after operations

• Venous leg ulcers (stasis ulcers)

• Decubitus (pressure ulcers)

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Normal wound healing is a complex process consisting of different events divided into three overlapping phases: inflammation, proliferation (granulation tissue formation) and remodelling. The process of wound healing requires the interaction of cells in the dermis (lower part of skin) and epidermis (upper part of skin) as well as the activity of chemical mediators (biochemical substances responsible for biological activities in the human body) released from inflammatory cells, fibroblasts and keratinocytes (specific cells playing a part in wound healing, for example).

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Professor Mester from Hungary and his collaborators first introduced the use of light irradiation as a phototherapeutic modality for the induction or acceleration of wound healing in the 1970s.

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BIOPTRON Light treatment can promote and speed up wound healing and lead to rapid regeneration of epithelium (skin tissue) in the edges and depths of a wound.

Chronic wounds are a frequently encountered problem in elderly and bedridden patients. Typical characteristics of chronic wounds include a loss of skin or underlying tissue and failure to heal with conventional types of treatment.

Chronic wounds are difficult to heal and require a long time to complete closure. The relative resistance of chronic wounds to a wide range of therapeutic approaches and the absence of a standard single therapy for the treatment of chronic wounds shifted the attention of many researchers toward the investigation of other therapies in patients with chronic wounds. 

General ineffectiveness of traditional regimens in the management of chronic wounds has led clinicians to study intensively complementary treatments as adjunct therapies to conventional treatments for the healing of chronic wounds. The use of different sources of light in wound healing therapy has gained particular attention in the last few decades, and many clinical studies have evaluated the role of light therapy in the management of chronic wounds.

BIOPTRON Light Therapy can promote and speed up wound healing through the stimulation and modulation of reparative and regenerative processes, anti-inflammatory effects and enhancing processes of the human defence system. This type of phototherapy can be considered a valuable therapy for the treatment of various wounds and wound healing disorders.

Venous leg ulcers

A leg ulcer is defined as a wound on the leg, below the knee, that fails to heal within 6 weeks. Venous leg ulcers constitute the majority of all leg ulcers and are responsible for up to 80% of lower extremity ulcerations. An overall prevalence of venous leg ulcers ranges from 0.06% to 2.2% with a tendency to increase as the population ages.

The prevalence of venous leg ulcers in patients aged 70 years is estimated

to be 1% to 4%.

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Venous leg ulcer refers to a failure of the venous system to return blood to the heart. This is usually caused by incompetent valves in the deep veins, the long saphenous vein, the short saphenous vein or the perforator veins of the calf. These veins are situated in the legs.

Due to weak venous valves, blood from the deep veins in the legs flows back into the minor veins (called the superficial veins), whereas the traffic should only be one-way. This leads to a build-up of blood in the superficial veins, which will slow down and may eventually stop. That can cause a metabolic breakdown, particularly in the surrounding skin area. As a result, the skin might start to degenerate, giving rise to inflammation and, ultimately, development of the ulcer.

Venous leg ulcers are difficult to heal and their complete healing can take years, with recurrence being a problem. Many patients with leg ulcers suffer from pain and some also have problems with sleep and mobility. The considerable morbidity of venous ulcers seriously impairs the quality of life in the majority of patients.

The positive effect of BIOPTRON Light Therapy on cells and the tissue can enhance the healing process in patients with venous leg ulcers.

BIOPTRON Light Therapy can also be considered effective in the treatment of venous leg ulcers when it is used as a component of a total wound management program.

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Decubitus (pressure ulcers)

The bedsore is a pressure ulcer, caused by prolonged pressure in patients confined to a bed or wheelchair for an extended period of time. They tend to develop on areas of the body where bony prominence is not protected by muscle tissue, such as the sacrum (tailbone), heels, elbows and shoulder blades. When pressure cuts off the blood supply, cells and tissue of the skin are damaged and ulcers will start to form, creating a breeding ground for harmful bacteria and further infections increasingly resistant to available antibiotics.

Because of an ageing population in every hospital the number of patients requiring treatment for bedsores is increasing, creating a huge waste of funds and resources.

Treatment generally involves taking pressure of the area (hence nurses or health care providers turning and moving their patients). The ulcers are cleaned, although occasionally they require surgical intervention. As light therapy is used as a part of the management of patients with bedsores in general, BIOPTRON Light Therapy has shown to be an effective therapy available to facilitate the healing. Light therapy also plays a role in the prevention of bedsores by reducing the burden of suffering associated with pressure ulcers.

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Burns

BIOPTRON Light Therapy has been used for the treatment of burn injuries for many years. Most of us have burnt ourselves at some point in our lives. Usually, this can be shrugged off, as the body heals itself, but for some people the results can be serious. However, the vast majority of burns are those superficial injuries that affect only a small area of the skin. These are normally caused by the action of heat on skin, which may include solar rays, open fires, or contact with a hot stove or hot liquids.

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The treatment of these burns depends on the depth and severity of the injury concerned. A classification system for these injuries was established that determines the precise nature of treatment (conservative or surgical) to be administered.

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First-degree burns are the mildest forms of burns.

A good example is a simple sunburn. First-degree burns are normally characterised by some reddening of the affected skin, a slight swelling and some pain or discomfort (although anyone who has suffered from sunburn may take issue with this). Nevertheless, the symptoms of these burns usually disappear after a few days without leaving any scar.

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Second-degree burns are called partial thickness burns and are divided into superficial and deep varieties. In the superficial second-degree burn, the entire epidermis (upper part of skin) and a superficial part of the dermis (lower part of skin) is destroyed. However, since the depth of burn is relatively superficial, usually there is no long-term damage to the epidermal appendages such as hair follicles, sweat glands or nerve endings. The damaged skin can regenerate approximately two weeks after the injury occurred.

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Deep second-degree burns, on the other hand, are much more serious. There is generally damage into the deep layer of the dermis, with only a few epidermal

appendages left at the base of the wound. These wounds often require surgical removal of dead tissue and transplantation of the skin (skin grafting). More than 50% of burns are deep second-degree burns or full dermal burn wounds.

In third-degree burns (full thickness burns) all layers of the skin are destroyed, leaving no possibility for the injury to heal naturally (unless the burn covers a very small area). The wounds are pale and insensate; the only possible treatment is surgery. The major complications in the healing of burns are the occurrence of infection and the development of bad scars (hypertrophic scars and keloids) and contractures.

BIOPTRON for 1st-degree and superficial 2nd-degree burns healing

First-degree and superficial second-degree burns can be treated with conservative local medical treatments in combination with BIOPTRON Light Therapy treatment. Several studies showed that the routine use of BIOPTRON Light Therapy for the treatment of these burns can significantly reduce the time necessary for complete epithelisation (regeneration of the skin) of the damaged skin (complete healing), reducing the risk for the formation of the functionally and aesthetically unacceptable scars. BIOPTRON Light Therapy can reduce the need for surgery in the treatment of deep dermal burns, particularly those located in areas where the likelihood of scar formation after surgery is extremely high (e.g., hands, head and neck area). 

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According to clinical findings, the application of pressure therapy, which is part of the treatments used in the management of burns, can start earlier if the burn area is previously treated with the BIOPTRON Light.

If the injured parts are treated with BIOPTRON Light, the physiotherapy can be started immediately and without interruption. This is not the case with surgically operated hands, which always require a period of immobilisation.

BIOPTRON supports deep 2nd-degree burns healing

BIOPTRON Light Therapy can also be used on patients with deep seconddegree burns after the surgical procedures. BIOPTRON Light can be supportive to reduce the healing time and hospitalisation period while improving the quality of care.

BIOPTRON Light Therapy has become the therapy of choice for the complimentary treatment of deep dermal burns

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* Before use please consult your physician to check if this therapy is advisable for the intended treatment purpose.