Following up on promising results from pilot  work, researchers at the VA Boston Healthcare System are testing the  effects of light therapy on brain function in veterans with Gulf War  Illness.

Veterans in the study wear a helmet lined with light-emitting diodes  that apply red and near-infrared light to the scalp. They also have  diodes placed in their nostrils, to deliver photons to the deeper parts  of the brain.

The light is painless and generates no heat. A treatment takes about 30 minutes.

The therapy, though still considered "investigational" and not  covered by most health insurance plans, is already used by some  alternative medicine practitioners to treat wounds and pain. The light  from the diodes has been shown to boost the output of nitric oxide near  where the LEDs are placed, which improves blood flow in that location.

"We are applying a technology that's been around for a while," says  lead investigator Dr. Margaret Naeser, "but it's always been used on the  body, for wound healing and to treat muscle aches and pains, and joint  problems. We're starting to use it on the brain."

Naeser is a research linguist and speech pathologist for the Boston  VA, and a research professor of neurology at Boston University School of  Medicine (BUSM). She is also a licensed acupuncturist and has conducted  past research on laser acupuncture to treat paralysis in stroke, and  pain in carpal tunnel syndrome.

The LED therapy increases blood flow in the brain, as shown on MRI  scans. It also appears to have an effect on damaged brain cells,  specifically on their mitochondria. These are bean-shaped subunits  within the cell that put out energy in the form of a chemical known as  ATP. The red and near-infrared light photons penetrate through the skull  and into brain cells and spur the mitochondria to produce more ATP.  That can mean clearer, sharper thinking, says Naeser.

Naeser says brain damage caused by explosions, or exposure to  pesticides or other neurotoxins--such as in the Gulf War--could impair  the mitochondria in cells. She believes light therapy can be a valuable  adjunct to standard cognitive rehabilitation, which typically involves  "exercising" the brain in various ways to take advantage of brain  plasticity and forge new neural networks.

"The light-emitting diodes add something beyond what's currently  available with cognitive rehabilitation therapy," says Naeser. "That's a  very important therapy, but patients can go only so far with it. And in  fact, most of the traumatic brain injury and PTSD cases that we've  helped so far with LEDs on the head have been through cognitive  rehabilitation therapy. These people still showed additional progress  after the LED treatments. It's likely a combination of both methods  would produce the best results."

The LED approach has its skeptics, but Naeser's group has already  published some encouraging results in the peer-reviewed scientific  literature.

Last June in the Journal of Neurotrauma, they reported the  outcomes of LED therapy in 11 patients with chronic TBI, ranging in age  from 26 to 62. Most of the injuries occurred in car accidents or on the  athletic field. One was a battlefield injury, from an improvised  explosive device (IED).

Neuropsychological testing before the therapy and at several points  thereafter showed gains in areas such as executive function, verbal  learning, and memory. The study volunteers also reported better sleep  and fewer PTSD symptoms.

The study authors concluded that the pilot results warranted a  randomized, placebo-controlled trial--the gold standard in medical  research.

That's happening now, thanks to VA support. One trial, already  underway, aims to enroll 160 Gulf War veterans. Half the veterans will  get the real LED therapy for 15 sessions, while the others will get a  mock version, using sham lights.

Then the groups will switch, so all the volunteers will end up  getting the real therapy, although they won't know at which point they  received it. After each veteran's last real or sham treatment, he or she  will undergo tests of brain function.

Naeser points out that "because this is a blinded, controlled study,  neither the participant nor the assistant applying the LED helmet and  the intranasal diodes is aware whether the LEDs are real or sham. So  they both wear goggles that block out the red LED light." The  near-infrared light is invisible to begin with.

Besides the Gulf War study, other trials of the LED therapy are getting underway:

• Later  this year, a trial will launch for veterans age 18 to 55 who have both  traumatic brain injury (TBI) and posttraumatic stress disorder--a common  combination in recent war veterans. The VA-funded study will be led by  Naeser's colleague Dr. Jeffrey Knight, a psychologist with VA's National  Center for PTSD and an assistant professor of psychiatry at BUSM.
• Dr.  Yelena Bogdanova, a clinical psychologist with VA and assistant  professor of psychiatry at BUSM, will lead a VA-funded trial looking at  the impact of LED therapy on sleep and cognition in veterans with blast  TBI.
• Naeser is collaborating on an Army study testing LED  therapy, delivered via the helmets and the nose diodes, for active-duty  soldiers with blast TBI. The study, funded by the Army's Advanced  Medical Technology Initiative, will also test the feasibility and  effectiveness of using only the nasal LED devices--and not the  helmets--as an at-home, self-administered treatment. The study leader is  Dr. Carole Palumbo, an investigator with VA and the Army Research  Institute of Environmental Medicine, and an associate professor of  neurology at BUSM.

Naeser hopes the work will validate LED  therapy as a viable treatment for veterans and others with brain  difficulties. She foresees potential not only for war injuries but for  conditions such as depression, stroke, dementia, and even autism.

"There are going to be many applications, I think. We're just in the beginning stages right now."

Story Source:

Materials provided by Veterans Affairs Research Communications. Note: Content may be edited for style and length.

Journal Reference:

1. Margaret A. Naeser, Ross Zafonte, Maxine H. Krengel, Paula I.  Martin, Judith Frazier, Michael R. Hamblin, Jeffrey A. Knight, William  P. Meehan, Errol H. Baker. Significant Improvements in Cognitive  Performance Post-Transcranial, Red/Near-Infrared Light-Emitting Diode  Treatments in Chronic, Mild Traumatic Brain Injury: Open-Protocol Study. Journal of Neurotrauma, 2014; 31 (11): 1008 DOI: 10.1089/neu.2013.3244 

Did You Know…that light therapy may boost brain function for many brain conditions, including dementia?

Today, brain-related diseases are among the most feared, whether they stem from dementia, stroke, or autism. That’s why new research from a team at the VA Boston Healthcare System is so exciting.  The team is testing the effects of light therapy on brain function in veterans with Gulf War Illness.

So far, their results are extremely promising.  The lead researcher believes this technology may have the potential to treat many types of brain-related conditions, including Alzheimer’s… and it may even become available for home use.

A Light-Emitting Helmet 

For the Boston study, veterans wore helmets lined with light-emitting diodes.  Those diodes applied red and near-infrared light to the scalp.  In order to deliver light to deeper areas of the brain, subjects also had diodes placed in their nostrils.  The treatments last about 30 minutes and involve no heat or pain.

“We are applying a technology that’s been around for a while,” says lead investigator Dr. Margaret Naeser, “but it’s always been used on the body, for wound healing and to treat muscle aches and pains, and joint problems.  We’re starting to use it on the brain.”

The light diodes are proven to increase nitric oxide, which improves blood flow to the area of the body being treated.  Now, MRI scans show that the LED therapy increases blood flow in the brain, as well.  The LED light works by penetrating through the skull and into brain cells.  There, it prompts the cells’ mitochondria to produce more of a chemical known as ATP.

“That can mean clearer, sharper thinking,” says Naeser.

Promising Early Results 

Naeser and her team have already published promising early results in peer-reviewed journals.  For example, last June in the Journal of Neurotrauma, they reported on a study of LED therapy in 11 patients with chronic traumatic brain injury.

Neuropsychological testing was conducted before the therapy and at several points afterward.  Subjects showed gains in…

Executive function
Verbal learning
Memory