Light Therapy and Eczema

Red
Blue
Skin

Atopic dermatitis and atopic eczema are extremely common — many of us have gone to the doctor with one of these conditions, seeking treatment.

This dermatitis, increasingly frequent in today's reality, has a chronic course with flare-up phases that can cause serious personal discomfort and occur on various parts of the body. While most doctors will often provide topical creams for short-term relief, it doesn't do justice for the long-term implications of this condition. 

These conditions are characterized by inflammation of the skin that occurs with the sudden formation of dry, itchy, and red, blistering patches, especially on hands, feet, wrists, ankles, face, neck, chest, internal crease of the elbow, and backbend of the knees.

Eczema can be a very irritating and uncomfortable condition to deal with. The itching and redness are highly unpleasant and can significantly impact your quality of life. Common sense pushes us to lather on moisturizers and creams to heal the dryness; however, that doesn't always work

But what causes these conditions? Doctors don't actually know the reason for atopic dermatitis, but it's believed to be related to genes and is often paired with asthma and hay fever. Atopic dermatitis is not an allergy to a particular substance; however, its presence increases the likelihood of developing asthma and hay fever (what doctors call atopic triad). Luckily, atopic dermatitis is not contagious.

The skin is the largest organ in the human body and, in the same way, the most accessible from the outside. Sunlight has been used since ancient times for the treatment of some skin diseases.

Light therapy is a therapeutic method based on scientifically-backed equipment capable of artificially reproducing light and thus simulating the beneficial action of the sun.

Using light therapy in skin disease is one of the therapeutic treatments offered to patients suffering from chronic dermatitis and a high majority of patients respond positively to this type of treatment. Light therapy works by using a narrow band with non-invasive UV which is more effective in treating these specific skin conditions.

“The most common form of light therapy is narrowband UVB, which has largely replaced other forms of phototherapy such as broadband UVB and PUVA,” says Dr. Guttman-Yassky, MD, Ph.D., dermatologist and the director of the Laboratory of Inflammatory Skin Diseases at the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai in New York City. “Narrowband UVB may be best as it’s safe and effective.”

The pathologies that can be addressed and controlled with light therapy are numerous, the main ones being psoriasis, mycosis fungoides, and of course, acne. Light therapy can also help with severe chronic eczema by controlling itching and skin inflammation. Led light therapy for skincare has been used for a while now, with incredible results. 

Light therapy lamp for eczema is used specifically for aiding the issue, not in the same way it treats a regular acne-problem. Light therapy at home for eczema is best to be done after consulting a professional. Once you have the knowledge, you can use it to your power. During the dermatological visit, the specialist assesses the history of skin neoplasms, the patient's skin, the type, anatomical site, and extent of the skin in progress and prescribes the most suitable light therapy treatment. 

When it comes to your skin, treatments can vary from person to person. For most patients, light therapy best time of day is most effective if it occurs early in the morning and is contraindicated late in the evening or night, as it can cause sleep disturbances. The anti-inflammatory action of light therapy allows for good control of the disease and can be used even for severe chronic eczema (with symptoms that persist for months or even years). 

However, it does more than just treat these conditions. There’s another payoff to using light therapy. As Dr. Guttman-Yassky continues, “light therapy also smoothes the lesions, decreasing skin thickening.”

It’s clear that light therapy can provide multiple treatments to various conditions. Not everyone is dealing with only one skin condition, yet, light therapy is able to tackle them all in one go. With Kayian’s MDASAP-certified and FDA-approved light therapy devices, users will be able to heal themselves from the inside out and get back to feeling balanced.