Transcranial Photobiomodulation in Neurological and Psychiatric Practice: Fundamental and Clinical Aspects

Abstract

Photobiomodulation is a relatively young medical technology that integrates the efforts of physicists, engineers and specialists in the field of biomedicine and includes various methods of light exposure to cells and tissues of the body. The main options for such effects are light radiation of the visible and IR spectrum generated by LED sources, and low-intensity laser radiation (LILI), which requires the use of lasers with special characteristics. In recent years, there has been an avalanche of interest among neurologists and psychiatrists in transcranial photobiomodulation, However, a systematization of empirical data and the fundamental foundations of technology is required. On this basis, the purpose of the review is to integrate ideas about the molecular-cellular and systemic effects of transcranial photobiomodulation and the prospects for its application in neurological and psychiatric practice. We have shown that intensive research in the field of studying the biological effects of low–intensity laser radiation, red and infrared light, which made it possible to decipher the main ways of responding to it at the molecular, cellular and tissue levels, created prerequisites for the formation of a new synthetic scientific direction - photobiomics. This translational discipline is focused on the development of pathogenetically sound technologies for the treatment of diseases of various profiles, including neurological and mental pathology. The results of experimental and clinical studies presented in the literature indicate the effectiveness of photobiomodulation in depression and post-traumatic stress disorder, nevertheless, extensive trials and meta-analyses are advisable for their full inclusion in international clinical recommendations.