August 02, 2004

Infrared Light Helps Heal Wounds

Genesis Medical Center, DeWitt Adds Wound Therapy

Dewitt, IA - It's been said that time heals all wounds. But some wounds are affected by factors that prevent the healing process.

Now a new device at Genesis Medical Center, DeWitt, called the Anodyne Therapy System, uses near infrared light to give a variety of difficult wounds the time and ability to heal. The hospital's Rehab Department recently acquired the system.

Anodyne therapy, also offered at Genesis' Illini and West Central Park campuses, is a non-invasive treatment that uses infrared light to improve blood flow, thereby increasing the amount of oxygen and nutrients carried to the affected areas. Patients experience less pain; regain sensation in their extremities; and see their wounds heal faster. In particular, the therapy appears to treat the root causes of difficult wounds, such as diabetic peripheral neuropathy.

During infrared therapy, an outpatient treatment, a physician places pads containing infrared diodes over the area being treated. When activated, these diodes emit a near infrared light, which penetrates the skin and triggers the release of a chemical in the blood called nitric oxide. This chemical helps to open blood vessels, thereby enhancing blood flow and the vessel's ability to remove fluids and waste products.