LED light therapy: the evidence behind the efficacy

The plethora of modalities available to the average consumer to improve skin health and appearance is greater than ever, owing to technological and medical developments and the role of social media in the normalisation and promotion of options that would not have been previously available outside of an aesthetic clinic.

Photobiomodulation (PBM), or photobiomodulation therapy (PBMT), which was discovered in the late 1960s, commonly defined as ‘treatment using irradiation with light of low power intensity’ (Tran et al, 2021), represents one of these options. Generally, PBMT can be divided into two modes, based on the duration of the wave light emitted by the device used: either pulsed or continuous (Tran et al, 2021). PBMT employs either non-coherent (light-emitting diodes (LEDs)) or coherent light sources (lasers), or a combination of both. The introduction of LED phototherapy aims to mitigate the disadvantages associated with lasers, such as issues related to safety and pricing (Tran et al, 2021). While lasers are often used in medical applications, LED light is typically preferred in dermatology and aesthetic medicine, due to the relatively large areas of tissue that require irradiation (Tran et al, 2021). Compared with laser devices, LED devices demonstrate several advantages, including ease of home use; irradiation of larger surface areas; increased capacity for wearable devices; greater cost-effectiveness; and enhanced safety (Tran et al, 2021). Therefore, various LED-based devices for dermatological and cosmetic applications have become widely available at reasonable prices (Tran et al, 2021).