My Experience with Blue Light Therapy in the Treatment of Mild to Moderate Acne

In 2007 I underwent blue light therapy and Levulan (ALA) treatment for mild to moderate acne at the Capri Medical Spa in Hillsborough, NJ. I had flawless skin as a teenager and only began to suffer from acne at the age of 20. Several types of birth controls, topical solutions such a Retin-A and 10% benzoyl peroxide, and oral antibiotics did very little to help my acne.

The procedure at Capri consisted of microdermabrasion; applying a topical aminolevulinic acid (Levulan) solution and sitting for 30 minutes, and up to 20 minutes under a narrow-band, high intensity blue light. The blue light was approved by the FDA to treat actinic keratosis, a precancerous growth on the skin. [1] Since this process, which is called photodynamic therapy, has not been approved to treat acne this is considered an "off label" use, which is common in cosmetic procedures. [2] The entire series of treatments consisted of approximately seven weekly sessions and cost around $1,000 including the initial consult and one free IPL Skin Rejuvenationsession. Comparatively, this was a great deal considering many spas would charge that for the microdermabrasion sessions alone. The spa is owned and operated by Dr. Edwin Schulhafer, a physician certified in internal medicine and allergy, asthma, and immunology. [3] Next door to the spa he runs an allergy, asthma, and sinus center. [4] His staff mostly administers and treats patients undergoing the acne treatment.

Levulan is a photosensitizing medication applied to the face thirty minutes prior to sitting under the blue light. It may sting or burn a bit, but the pain is minimal. As someone with very pale and sensitive skin, the stinging was vague enough that I only had to remove it once prior to the 30 minutes being up. The downside to Levulan is that the medication sensitizes you to any light, so avoiding sun exposure for 48 hours afterwards is highly recommended. [5]

The light works best to treat inflammatory acne rather than whiteheads and blackheads, and it does not contain harmful ultraviolet light (UAV). Possible side effects include: pigment changes (temporary), swelling, and dryness.[6] I suspect pigment changes would occur more in African American and darker toned skin as I suffered none of this and I am a very fair skinned Caucasian. Generally, eight sessions are conducted over a four-week period lasting on average 15 minutes.

Throughout the treatments I did not personally notice any reduction in my inflammatory acne other than typical hormonal fluctuations, which occurred prior to and after the treatment. Generally, my skin breaks out more before my period and looks a bit better afterward, so this is nothing unusual to me. The medical assistant working on me did note that she noticed some clearing of blackheads on my forehead, but since blue light therapy is not used for treatment of non-inflammatory acne, this was likely due to the microdermabarasion, Levulan, or did not improve at all.

In one clinical trial conducted in the USA, 25 patients with acne were directed to treat half of their face with a topical called clindamycin and the other half to undergo the blue light therapy. The results after four weeks of the study showed that there was a 22.25% improvement on the side treated with clindamycin and a 39% improvement with the side treated with blue lights. After eight weeks without any further treatment, the side treated with clindamycin appeared clearer.[7]

Now, you may purchase your own blue light devices to use at home for as little as $250-$300. After personally spending slightly more than $1,000 and seeing no more relief than over the counter products produced, I would highly recommend looking into one of these prior to undergoing the Levulan/light therapy treatment. It must be noted, of course, that everyone reacts differently to medications and treatments and all acne is different in both the cause and how it manifests itself.

[1] https://health.google.com/health/ref/Actinic+keratosis

[2] http://www.aetna.com/cpb/medical/data/600_699/0656.html

[3] http://www.caprimedicalspa.com/aboutus.htm

[4] http://w http://thedermblog.com/2009/05/31/blue-light-therapy-for-acne-is-it-worth-it/

[5] http://www.bestallergycare.com/

[6] http://www.skincarephysicians.com/acnenet/article_lasers.html

[7] "New Blue light edges out clindamycin". Dermatology Times. 2004 March: 25(3); 40.