INTRODUCTION: The use of photobiomodulation has been proposed to improve wound healing for the last two decades. Recent development in photobiomodulation has led to the development of a novel biophotonic platform that utilizes fluorescent light energy (FLE) within the visible spectrum of light for healing of skin inflammation and wounds.

MATERIALS AND METHODS: In this article, FLE was used in preliminary analysis on 18 case studies of acute second-degree burns and in a pilot study using an ex vivo human skin model. Efficacy of FLE on wound healing and tissue remodeling was evaluated by monitoring improvements in the treated tissues, assessing pain for the patients, and by performing human genome microarray analysis of FLE-treated human skin samples.

RESULTS: Healing was reported for all 18 patients treated with FLE for acute second-degree burns without reported adverse effects or development of infections. Furthermore, preliminary ex vivo skin model data suggest that FLE impacts different cellular pathways including essential immune-modulatory mechanisms.

CONCLUSIONS: The results presented in this article are encouraging and suggest that FLE balances different stages of wound healing, which opens the door to initiating randomized controlled clinical trials for establishing the efficacy of FLE treatment in different phases of wound healing of second-degree burns.