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Randomized trial · measured the question itself

4-week trial in 76 people: LED light cut facial wrinkles by up to 36%

Lee and colleagues · Journal of photochemistry and photobiology. B, Biology · 2007

Original title: A prospective, randomized, placebo-controlled, double-blinded, and split-face clinical study on LED phototherapy for skin rejuvenation: clinical, profilometric, histologic, ultrastructural, and biochemical evaluations and comparison of three different treatment settings.

Under review. A person has not yet checked this summary against the paper. It is written from the PubMed abstract. Until a person checks it, search engines are asked not to list this page.

What the study found

Points to benefit

Wrinkles were reduced by up to 36% and skin elasticity rose by up to 19% from baseline in the three light groups. Skin samples showed more collagen and elastic fibers.

The study at a glance

Type of study
Randomized trial
Who or what was studied
76 people · 76 people with facial wrinkles
What was tested
LED light on half the face, twice a week for 4 weeks: 830 nm, 633 nm, both together, or sham light; 3 months follow-up
What it measured
The question itself: wrinkles and skin aging
How long
4 weeks
Who has a stake
No disclosure in PubMed
No disclosure in PubMed.
Journal
Journal of photochemistry and photobiology. B, Biology, 2007
Source
PubMed record 17566756. This page is based on the abstract only.

How much this study counts

  • ✓Randomized: people were put into groups by chance, so the groups start out alike.
  • •Medium size: 76 people.
  • –Short: 4 weeks. Longer-term effects are unknown.
  • ✓Measured the question itself: wrinkles and skin aging.
  • •The PubMed record has no conflict-of-interest statement.
  • •Summarized from the PubMed abstract only. The full paper may hold details the abstract leaves out.

✓ Strength– Limit• Note

These points come from fixed rules about the type of study, its size and length, what it measured, and who has a stake. Every study on Digestery gets the same rules.

Where this study sits

Each dot is one on-topic paper on this question. Steps near the top answer the question more directly.

↑ Stronger evidence

  1. Trials in people: wrinkles and skin aging

    6

    5 benefit, 1 mixed

    ↑ This study is the ringed dot

  2. Trials in people: other measures

    0

    None among the papers we read.

  3. Trials in people: lab tests or safety

    0

    None among the papers we read.

  4. Population studies

    0

    None among the papers we read.

  5. Blood levels and genes

    0

    None among the papers we read.

↓ Weaker evidence

  • Points to benefit
  • Mixed
  • No difference
  • No direction
  • Points to harm

How it fits with the other research

The short answer to “Does red light therapy work for skin?”

Maybe a little; trials are small.

Confidence: low. Based on 7 on-topic papers.

Read the full answer

Of the other 5 papers on the same step: 4 benefit, 1 mixed. This one found benefit. It agrees with most of them.

Other papers on the same step

See all 7 studies on this question

How this page was made

Label

First read of the abstract
Claude Sonnet
Independent second read
Claude Haiku
Differences settled
The reviewer corrected 2 fields after reading the abstract. Claude Opus 5.5.
Headline
Claude Sonnet, from the checked study record. A script checked its numbers and wording.
Numbers
Checked against the abstract by a script
“How much this study counts”
Fixed rules, the same for every study
Source check by a person
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