LASER THERAPY
Online ISSN : 1884-7269
Print ISSN : 0898-5901
ISSN-L : 0898-5901
Review Articles
DEVELOPMENT AND CLINICAL APPLICATIONS OF INTRAVENOUS LASER BLOOD IRRADIATION (ILBI)
Vladimir Mikhailov
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JOURNAL FREE ACCESS

2009 Volume 18 Issue 2 Pages 69-83

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Abstract

Extracorporeal irradiation of blood using ultraviolet light has been well-documented particularly in the Russian literature as having efficacy in the treatment of a number of diseases and conditions, but the technique required a high level of technical skill and was relatively invasive. The extracorporeal approach was necessary due to the poor penetration of UV light into living tissue. The development over the past 3 decades of efficient and comparatively inexpensive laser devices delivering low levels of laser energy in the visible red and near infrared wavebands offered deep penetration of light into living tissue and allowed the application of the transcutaneous approach for irradiating blood in vivo. This approach, although noninvasive, could not deliver laser energy efficiently and precisely to the main target, i.e., the blood, due to the non-specificity of these wavebands for hemoglobin, so the next stage was the minimally invasive delivery of laser energy concentrated directly into the blood itself using the intravenous approach, and intravenous laser blood irradiation (ILBI) successfully developed. Applications rapidly expanded in the 1980’s and 1990’s, including heart diseases and arrhythmias, pulmonary disease, problems of the exocrine and endocrine systems, treatment of postoperative sepsis, oncology and autoimmune disease, amongst others. Currently in Russia, many pathologies are successfully treated with ILBI, and the successfully treated patient numbers have reached the hundreds of thousands. The current review article traces the development of ILBA, examines devices and wavelengths used, and categorizes clinical applications. Based on the available data, we can conclude that ILBI improves the rheological properties of the irradiated blood thereby stimulating blood and tissue cells and enhancing the autoimmune system. ILBI offers high efficacy, shorter treatment periods and increased treatment latency. When used in combination therapy, ILBI improves the efficacy and results of the other therapy or therapies. Finally, it would appear that a frequency modulated beam is more efficient than the same system or wavelength applied in continuous wave.

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© 2009 Japan Medical Laser Laboratory
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