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Title: Can Red-Light Therapy Treat Brain Injuries?

Link: https://science.slashdot.org/story/26/09/11/2...

The Athletic reports that researchers at the University of Utah are studying
itPBM, a medical-grade red-light therapy that has shown promising signs of
reducing brain inflammation and improving cognition, mood, anxiety, motor
performance and neural connectivity. The report centers in part on former BYU
football star and University of Utah adjunct professor Larry Carr, who says
the treatment helped him after years of brain damage from repeated head
impacts. An anonymous reader shares an excerpt from the report: ... The
knife, the call, the diagnosis in 2013, would lead [Carr] on a life-changing
mission -- one in which he and a team of researchers at the University of
Utah would eventually compile research that one of those researchers,
Elisabeth Wilde, Ph.D, co-director of the Traumatic Brain Injury (TBI) and
Concussion Center, calls "striking." The treatment they are studying is
called photobiomodulation therapy, or itPBM (intranasal transcranial PBM),
also known as red-light therapy. It is different from the kind of superficial
red-light usage one can find on social media skincare channels or at a
wellness boutique, and its application is broader. The research includes
multiple studies, and is not just focused on ex-football players, but on
women and men in various walks of life. The group recently published their
latest results in the Journal of Neurotrauma, based on a study that followed
26 BYU football players throughout a season, suggesting the treatment could
"potentially safeguard neurological health without reduced playing time or
contact exposure." Definitive clinical trials haven't been run yet; broader
research and validation is required, and some in the field are skeptical.
Carr acknowledges some have told him that it could be "too good to be true."
Still, other outside experts who spoke with The Athletic call the findings
promising. They make sure to caution: This is not a cure-all, and there is
much more to be tested. But the findings have been compelling enough to
justify more research and more speculation. Researchers say 14 peer-reviewed
studies have linked itPBM with improvements in cognition, mood, anxiety,
attention, executive function, motor performance, and other measures, while
brain imaging has shown reduced inflammation and improved connectivity. One
of the most striking findings mentioned in the report came from a study of 26
BYU football players during the 2021 season. Players who did not receive
treatment developed significant, widespread brain inflammation, while the
treated group showed no comparable increase and even demonstrated reduced
inflammation in some brain regions. As researcher Michael Carr put it, "I
believe our BYU data suggests the players' brains using itPBM are actually
healthier after the season." He added: "That is a first." Carr also said
treated participants showed fewer symptoms of depression, anxiety, stress and
PTSD, along with faster processing, better sustained attention and stronger
executive function. Researchers have also observed improvements in balance,
motor control and grip strength. Taken together, the findings suggest itPBM
may have a neuroprotective effect.

Read more of this story at Slashdot.

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