The Treatment of Pulmonary Tuberculosis by Ultraviolet Radiation

John Stanley Coulter, MD, and the Emergence of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation in the Early 20th Century

“…A number dealt with the investigation of heat modalities such as heliotherapy (ultraviolet light) and diathermy, for which he had received grant support from the AMA Council [35]. Physical medicine research in the 1930s was directed at diseases such as tuberculosis [36]. For example, heliotherapy and ultraviolet radiation were examined critically in a study of 80 cases of pulmonary tuberculosis with 140 control cases and were found not to be effective [37].…”

“…Coulter recognized the importance of demonstrating the physiologic responses of deep heating and its effectiveness compared to costlier and potentially unsafe applications [35,36]. Like Coulter, leaders today have recognized the need to establish standards of effectiveness and safety for therapeutic ultrasound, a form of diathermy (deep heating of muscle by electrical methods) [41‐43].…”

“…Like Coulter, leaders today have recognized the need to establish standards of effectiveness and safety for therapeutic ultrasound, a form of diathermy (deep heating of muscle by electrical methods) [41‐43]. Similarly, Coulter and his colleagues studied ultraviolet light for the treatment of tuberculosis (heliotropy) through its induction of vitamin D synthesis [36]. Although Coulter's research did not suggest efficacy of heliotropy, there are scientific grounds to continue the research.…”

A Potential Role of Vitamin D on Platelet Leukocyte Aggregation and Pathological Events in Sepsis: An Updated Review

“…6 In the 19th century, prior to the development of effective antibiotics, VD was serendipitously used to cure infections, such as tuberculosis, through sunlight exposure and administration of cod liver oil, which are the main sources of VD. [7][8][9][10][11] The Nobel Prize for medicine or physiology in 1903 was awarded to Finsen for his contribution in treating lupus vulgaris, a skin disease caused by Mycobacterium tuberculosis with ultraviolet (UV) light. [12][13][14] Since then, some cross-sectional studies have suggested an inverse correlation between lower levels of VD and increased infections, such as tuberculosis (TB) and upper respiratory tract infections.…”