Photobiomodulation intranasal red light therapy is delivered from a low-intensity laser or LED light from nose to brain to prevent degeneration of the neurons in Parkinson’s disease. 

What Is Parkinson's Disease?

PD, or Parkinson’s Disease, is a neurodegenerative disease in which brain cells that produce dopamine stop working. Dopamine is the chemical, or a neurotransmitter, to be exact, that drives the moments and gives a sense of motivation. The unavailability of dopamine produces a range of symptoms that affect an individual’s overall quality of life.

Prevalence Stated For PD

In the United States, about 600 000 to 1 million people are suffering from Parkinson's disease, and at least 60 000 are diagnosed each year. It defines why Parkinson's is the second most common neurodegenerative disease next to Alzheimer's. 

Here’s The Major Risk Factor For PD

Age is one most critical factors for Parkinson's disease. The chances of getting the disease increase with age as the brain tissues become more vulnerable to damage. Environmental hazards like head injuries and exposure to certain chemicals might also contribute to the development of PD.

The average diagnostic age for people with PD is 60. However, it’s not just an old age disease; it sometimes hits people in their early thirties and forties. 

Diagnosis And Symptoms of PD 

Unlike other diseases, with definitive diagnostic lab tests, Parkinson's disease is not diagnosed with a definitive investigation. Rather, it’s diagnosed by an experienced neurologist based on clinical signs and symptoms.

The diagnosis is completely based on medical history and comprehensive physical examination. Medical doctors completely rely on two of three classic motor symptoms, resting tremors, stiffness, and slow movement, to reach the diagnosis.  Other symptoms like problems with balance, speech impairment, and cognitive and behavioral issues may also point toward Parkinson's.

However, Parkinson's Disease does not always present with classic motor symptoms. Sometimes, people also experience walking instability and balance loss. At times, constipation, sleep problems, cognitive changes, loss of smell, and sleep imbalance can occur. There is no standard trajectory of symptoms; every other sufferer presents their own version of symptoms.  

So, how can we treat Parkinson’s disease?

Treatment Regimens For Parkinson’s Disease 

The treatment regimens vary widely from medications to surgical procedures in order to lessen the intensity of the symptoms; however, the progression of the disease is unstoppable.

Medication Therapy 

Dopaminergic medications are the mainstay of the treatment. Considering the pathophysiology of the diseases, which can be scaled back to low levels of dopamine in the brain, supplemental dopamine help alleviate the disease symptoms. 

Commonly used dopaminergic drugs are levodopa and carbidopa, adjunct to monoamine oxidase B inhibitors, and rasagiline. 

Rsallagine is known to prevent the destruction of levodopa and carbidopa, which are dopamine agonists, from being destroyed in the peripheral body before reaching the brain. 

Botulinum Toxin Injection 

Abnormal foot posturing, hyperactive muscle, and drooling of saliva are the associated symptoms of PD. These can be controlled by injecting botulinum toxin into the affected area.  This reduces the symptoms by paralyzing the muscles. 

Intranasal Red Light Therapy 

 Deep brain stimulation, involving the implantation of a device to help generate impulses for electrical stimulation of muscles and motor areas, is believed to be the most invasive surgical treatment for PD. However, researchers have found a new therapy that may help with this problem without any need for surgery.

Intranasal red light therapy, or NIr for short, uses infrared illumination to target brain tissues in toxic environments. The lack of oxygen and mitochondrial dysfunction deregulate cellular functions, thereby protecting dopamine-producing neurons. It reduces overall inflammation and brain sub-structures by restoring the functional capacity of the cellular organelle, mitochondria. 

Deep Brain Stimulation

It’s an adjunctive therapy as potent as levodopa which works extremely well for elderly patients. It’s an advanced neurosurgical procedure, and not all PD patients are candidates for it. 

Improve PD Symptoms: How Does Intranasal Light Therapy Work?

Researchers have found that applying infrared light to the head can provide neuroprotection, prevent toxic protein accumulation in the brain and improve the production and regulation of neurotransmitters. 

It does so by improving the overall oxygen level and nitrous oxide levels to improve the oxygenation capacity of the localized area. Additionally, It combats localized inflammation by improving the brain tissue's fighting cell count, leaving the brain's structures in good health.  

As we have seen, dopamine is lacking in Parkinson's Disease; adopting this non-invasive yet safer treatment modality is a contemporary yet confident method to combat it. 

Let’s dive deep into how intranasal light therapy benefits can be achieved exactly. 

Intranasal Photobiomodulation Therapy From Nostrils 

The nasal route is a very promising approach for drug delivery and light therapy. It allows therapeutic agents to reach the brain directly without facing the first-pass effect. It requires no surgical interventions; it's minimally invasive, easily accessible, noninvasive, and has a very short time for treatment. It means there won’t be any drug attenuation as it won't be circulated to the other body part where it isn't needed. The nose allows localized delivery of therapeutic agents, in our case, infrared light, to the brain. 

The therapy initiates when a small laser diode/Led is clipped unilaterally or bilaterally to the nose. The infrared light is shown through the nose, which is absorbed by the nasal mucosa and the surrounding tissues. 

Such direct blood irradiation is extremely potent through the nose because it is supplied with an internal and external carotid artery that goes into the brain. These arteries and their branches make an anastomosis which allows rapid diffusion of external therapeutic agents, improving overall oxygenation of that area. 

Intranasal Photobiomodulation Therapy From The Sphenoid Sinus

The sphenoid sinus is a very effective route for laser light therapy. It's also considered to be the most direct pathway from the nostrils to the brain. The sphenoid sinus can be accessed through a variety of transnasal routes, such as transpterygoidal and transplanum. 

An optical fiber is advanced through the nasal cavity and introduced into the sinus space after nasal surgery. The LED/ infrared diode is connected to the optical fiber to enhance healing in the cranial space. 

How Does Photomodulation Therapy Help with Parkinson's Disease by Altering Gut-Microbiome? 

The gut microbiome specifies microorganisms within one’s abdomen.  A few researchers have suggested that infrared light therapy brings a commendable change in the gut microbiome that relieves Parkinson's Disease symptoms. 

The gut and the brain are linked with a neuro system called the enteric system. Hence, it’s appreciated certain microorganisms in the abdomen are highly interlinked with inflammatory and degenerative conditions of the brain. 

Photomodulation therapy has a significant impact on improving the overall health condition of such sufferers. It works by using narrow wavelength infrared light to modulate cellular response. It acts primarily on chromophores (the light-absorbing molecules) in mitochondria to increase the production of ATP and the reactive oxygen species.

It upturns gene transcription for better protein remodeling, formation, and functioning. Photobiomodulation infrared therapy is gaining popularity because it’s a non-invasive therapy with no significant side effects.

Wrapping It Up 

Intranasal photobiomodulation therapy can improve symptoms in patients with Parkinson's disease. It targets the brain directly through the nose and the sphenoid sinus. It activates mitochondrial activity, reduces inflammation, and improves overall cellular health. According to 1 similar research, 650nm laser therapy once daily for ten days showed improvement in symptoms of 60% of Parkinson’s Disease patients. Hence, intranasal red light therapy is a non-invasive contemporary treatment modality for neurodegenerative disorders.