Treating Acne

The TYGON™ Lyte Ultra can be used to effectively treat or as an adjunct to professional medical treatment of various skin conditions including Acne Vulgaris (“Acne”), Dermatitis (rashes such as eczema), and Psoriasis. Our proprietary, scientifically supported, light therapy protocols, combine specific wavelengths, in the case of Acne – 415nm and 660nm, at a specific frequency, to maximize therapy results.

What is Acne?

Acne is a condition of the skin in which oil and dead skin plugs the hair follicles, and most commonly affects the face, forehead, chest, upper back and shoulders. The Prevalence of Acne has been reported between 35% to over 90% among adolescents (Stathakis, Kilkenny, and Marks 1997).

Although the exact cause if not completely understood, the current thought involves follicular hyperconification, increased sebum secretion, colonization of Propionibacterium acnes (P.acnes), and inflammation (Lee, You, and Park 2007).

Currently available treatments:

Topical antibiotics
Topical retinoids
Benzoyl peroxide
Salicylic acid

Azaleic acid
Tetracycline and doxycycline
Oral retinoids
Hormones

Risks of Treatment Products

Despite many options that are available for treatment, many patients still respond inadequately or experience adverse side effects. (Hamblin and Huang, 2014)

The potential dangers of Acne treatment Products
Cleveland Clinic – Health Essentials (July, 2014)

“Over-the-counter acne treatments can help you keep your skin clear and blemish-free. But some of these lotions and gels also could produce dangerous reactions that may, in rare circumstances, be life-threatening. The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) recently issued a warning that says products containing the ingredients benzoyl peroxide or salicylic acid can cause rare but serious and potentially life-threatening allergic reactions or severe irritation. The FDA warning was prompted by 131 reports of serious allergic reactions from these products, which include gels, lotions, facial washes, cleansing pads, toners and facial scrubs. The reports came from consumers and manufacturers between 1969 and January 2013.

Allergy-like reactions
The serious reactions reported to the FDA were severe allergy symptoms such as:

Throat tightness
Shortness of breath
Wheezing

Low blood pressure
Fainting
Collapse

People also reported isolated instances of hives, or itching on the face or body – even of parts of the body where the person did not apply the medication – and swelling of the eyes, face and lips. About 42 percent of the people who had reactions experienced them within minutes to 24 hours after using the products. No deaths were reported, but 44 percent of the people who had severe reactions required hospitalization.”

Photobiomodulation (LLLT) for treatment of Acne

It has been observed that Acne improves following exposure to direct sunlight as well as artificial solar radiation. The causative microorganism, P. acnes, produces porphyrins which absorb light at the near ultraviolet (UV) and blue spectrum. In a clinical study, Papageorgiou and Katsambas (2000) demonstrated that the combination of Blue and Red light therapy was more effective at treating Acne Vulgaris as compared to white light, blue light alone and benzoyl peroxide. Blue light has been shown to work through photoexcitation of bacterial porphyrins, singlet oxygen production and eventual bacterial destruction. It has been postulated that Red light exerts it therapeutic effect via its anti-inflammatory properties by inhibiting prostaglandin E2 (PGE2) production and cyclo-oxygenase 1 and 2 (COX-1 and COX-2) mRNA expression (Lim W, et al, 2013).

Phototherapy with blue (415 nm) and red (660 nm) light in the treatment of acne vulgaris. P Papageorgiou, A. Katsambas and A. Chu, British Journal of Dermatology 2000; 142: 973-978.