Acne vulgaris
Red light therapy for moderate-to-severe acne systematic review and meta-analysis
Wu Y, Deng Y, Huang P, et al. Journal of Cosmetic Dermatology. 2021.
A meta-analysis of red light therapy for acne found no statistically significant superiority over conventional therapies.
Evidence grade
low
Effect direction
mixed
Panel relevance
partially-replicable
Key findings
- The review included 13 RCTs with 422 participants.
- Red light therapy did not significantly outperform conventional therapies for inflammatory, non-inflammatory, or total lesions.
- Adverse events were generally mild or absent.
Protocol details
| Wavelengths | Not reported nm |
|---|---|
| Irradiance | Not reported mW/cm2 |
| Fluence | Not reported J/cm2 |
| Session time | Not reported minutes |
| Frequency | Varied by trial |
| Duration | Varied by trial |
| Treatment area | Acne-affected skin |
| Device type | Red light therapy devices; some acne literature overlaps with photodynamic therapy |
Caveats
- Acne studies are heterogeneous and often not simple red/NIR panel protocols.
- The review does not support strong superiority claims over standard acne care.