ArticlePhotonics2019
Photobiomodulation for Alzheimer's Disease: Has the Light Dawned?
Article in Photonics, 2019. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 60 papers, 4 of them syntheses that pooled it.
What it found
Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.
The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.
Who cites it
60 citing papers in PubMed, 4 syntheses or guidelines pooled it, 130 citations in OpenAlex.
- Phototherapy of Alzheimer's Disease: Photostimulation of Brain Lymphatics during Sleep: A Systematic Review.International journal of molecular sciences · 2023Pooled it
- Photobiomodulation improves depression symptoms: a systematic review and meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials.Frontiers in psychiatry · 2023Pooled it
- Phototherapy for Cognitive Function in Patients With Dementia: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis.Frontiers in aging neuroscience · 2022Pooled it
- Photobiomodulation for Parkinson's Disease in Animal Models: A Systematic Review.Biomolecules · 2020Pooled it
- Comparative effectiveness of multiple interventions for Alzheimer's disease on ABC syndromes and QoL: A Bayesian network meta-analysis.iScience · 2026Article
- Mitochondrial Dysfunction in Alzheimer's Disease and Mitochondria-Targeted Therapeutics.Cells · 2026Review
- Application of non-invasive transcranial photobiomodulation in ischemic stroke: Mechanisms and current insights.iScience · 2026Review
- Transcranial photobiomodulation for the treatment of chemobrain: new perspectives from a pilot study.Supportive care in cancer : official journal of the Multinational Association of Supportive Care in Cancer · 2026Article
- Frequency-Specific Transcranial Photobiomodulation Elicits Complementary Glial Mechanisms for Neurovascular Protection and Amyloid Clearance in Alzheimer Disease.Cyborg and bionic systems (Washington, D.C.) · 2026Article
- Gut Microbiota-Targeted Photobiomodulation Ameliorates Alzheimer's Pathology via the Gut-Brain Axis: Comparable Efficacy to Transcranial Irradiation.Microorganisms · 2025Article
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- 40 Hz light preserves synaptic plasticity and mitochondrial function in Alzheimer's disease model.Scientific reports · 2024Article
- Microglia and Astrocytes in Alzheimer's Disease: Significance and Summary of Recent Advances.Aging and disease · 2024Review
- Near-infrared II theranostic agents for the diagnosis and treatment of Alzheimer's disease.European journal of nuclear medicine and molecular imaging · 2024Review
- Photobiomodulation for pain relief: Model-based estimates of effective doses of light at the neural target.Journal of photochemistry and photobiology. B, Biology · 2024Article
- Efficacy of Photobiomodulation Therapy in Older Adults: A Systematic Review.Biomedicines · 2024Review
- Promising Strategies to Reduce the SARS-CoV-2 Amyloid Deposition in the Brain and Prevent COVID-19-Exacerbated Dementia and Alzheimer's Disease.Pharmaceuticals (Basel, Switzerland) · 2024Review
- Photobiomodulation in experimental models of Alzheimer's disease: state-of-the-art and translational perspectives.Alzheimer's research & therapy · 2024Review
- Transcranial photobiomodulation therapy improves cognitive test scores in dogs with presumptive canine cognitive dysfunction: A case series of five dogs.Open veterinary journal · 2024Article
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
1 author at 1 institution in 1 country.
Funding
Abstract
Next to cancer, Alzheimer's disease (AD) and dementia is probably the most worrying health problem facing the Western world today. A large number of clinical trials have failed to show any benefit of the tested drugs in stabilizing or reversing the steady decline in cognitive function that is suffered by dementia patients. Although the pathological features of AD consisting of beta-amyloid plaques and tau tangles are well established, considerable debate exists concerning the genetic or lifestyle factors that predispose individuals to developing dementia. Photobiomodulation (PBM) describes the therapeutic use of red or near-infrared light to stimulate healing, relieve pain and inflammation, and prevent tissue from dying. In recent years PBM has been applied for a diverse range of brain disorders, frequently applied in a non-invasive manner by shining light on the head (transcranial PBM). The present review discusses the mechanisms of action of tPBM in the brain, and summarizes studies that have used tPBM to treat animal models of AD. The results of a limited number of clinical trials that have used tPBM to treat patients with AD and dementia are discussed.
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Registered trials
Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.