Low-power laser light in the healing of burns: a comparison between two different wavelengths (635 nm and 690 nm) and a placebo group.
OBJECTIVE
Studies on the influence of low-power laser light on wound healing have shown inconsistent results, or, as in the case of burns, are very scarce. We have studied the effects of two different low-power diode laser lights on the healing of burns in rats.


METHODS
Thirty rats were burned on both flanks and randomly allocated to one of three study groups. In group A, both wounds remained untreated; in groups B and C, one wound each was irradiated with 635 nm or 690 nm laser light (1.5 J/cm(2)), whereas the other wound remained untreated. Diameter, redness, and edema of the wounds were examined daily.


RESULTS
Between and within groups, diameter, redness, and edema of the wounds were similar throughout the entire observation period. Irradiation of the burns did not accelerate wound healing when compared with control wounds.


CONCLUSIONS
We conclude that neither 690 nm nor 635 nm low-power laser light produced any beneficial effects on the healing processes of burns in rats.
Department of Anesthesia and General Intensive Care Medicine, Division of Anesthesia, the Leopold Franzens University of Innsbruck, Austria. andreas.schlager@uibk.ac.at
A
A
Schlager
P
P
Kronberger
F
F
Petschke
H
H
Ulmer
D000704:Analysis of Variance; D000818:Animals; D002056:Burns / Q000503:physiopathology / Q000532:radiotherapy*; D004307:Dose-Response Relationship, Radiation; D004487:Edema / Q000517:prevention & control; D004890:Erythema / Q000517:prevention & control; D053685:Laser Therapy; D008297:Male; D011878:Radiotherapy / Q000379:methods; D011897:Random Allocation; D051381:Rats; D017207:Rats, Sprague-Dawley; D014945:Wound Healing / Q000528:radiation effects*