Red/near-infrared irradiation therapy for treatment of central nervous system injuries and disorders

Melinda Fitzgerald; Stuart Hodgetts; Corinna Van Den Heuvel; Riccardo Natoli; Nathan S. Hart; Krisztina Valter; Alan R. Harvey; Robert Vink; Jan Provis; Sarah A. Dunlop

doi:10.1515/revneuro-2012-0086

Article

Red/near-infrared irradiation therapy for treatment of central nervous system injuries and disorders

Melinda Fitzgerald , Stuart Hodgetts , Corinna Van Den Heuvel , Riccardo Natoli , Nathan S. Hart , Krisztina Valter , Alan R. Harvey , Robert Vink , Jan Provis and Sarah A. Dunlop

Published/Copyright: March 15, 2013

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From the journal Reviews in the Neurosciences Volume 24 Issue 2

Abstract

Irradiation in the red/near-infrared spectrum (R/NIR, 630–1000 nm) has been used to treat a wide range of clinical conditions, including disorders of the central nervous system (CNS), with several clinical trials currently underway for stroke and macular degeneration. However, R/NIR irradiation therapy (R/NIR-IT) has not been widely adopted in clinical practice for CNS injury or disease for a number of reasons, which include the following. The mechanism/s of action and implications of penetration have not been thoroughly addressed. The large range of treatment intensities, wavelengths and devices that have been assessed make comparisons difficult, and a consensus paradigm for treatment has not yet emerged. Furthermore, the lack of consistent positive outcomes in randomised controlled trials, perhaps due to sub-optimal treatment regimens, has contributed to scepticism. This review provides a balanced précis of outcomes described in the literature regarding treatment modalities and efficacy of R/NIR-IT for injury and disease in the CNS. We have addressed the important issues of specification of treatment parameters, penetration of R/NIR irradiation to CNS tissues and mechanism/s, and provided the necessary detail to demonstrate the potential of R/NIR-IT for the treatment of retinal degeneration, damage to white matter tracts of the CNS, stroke and Parkinson’s disease.

Keywords: irradiation therapy; Parkinson’s disease; retinal degeneration; trauma – nervous system

Corresponding author: Melinda Fitzgerald, Experimental and Regenerative Sciences; and School of Animal Biology, The University of Western Australia, Crawley 6009, Australia

Received: 2012-12-17

Accepted: 2013-1-28

Published Online: 2013-03-15

Published in Print: 2013-04-01

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Articles in the same Issue

https://doi.org/10.1515/revneuro-2012-0086

Keywords for this article

irradiation therapy; Parkinson’s disease; retinal degeneration; trauma – nervous system