New light thereapies are coming to market that are designed to operate inside the bloodstream. Will they find their way into cosmetic medicine?

One example of this is UVLrx Intravenous Light Therapy, a treatment that uses light delivered directly into the bloodstream intravenously. UVLrx is currently being tested for treatments ranging from a myriad of diseases; Lyne desease, Epstien Barr Virus, Hepatitis C, HIV, Dengue Fever, and even pain and general inflammation.

There are of course other light based blood therapies, but many of those involve drawing blood (roughly 5% of blood volume) that is then treated outside the body and injected back in the patient. These new therapies look to treat the full blood volume with less energy delivery. And, since the LED stays inside the peripheral intravascular catheter during the treatment, UVLrx says that they are in a "non-significant risk" status according to FDA guidelines.

Currently, the UVLrx device is not available for sale in the U.S. but according to their website they have already recieved ISO 13485 certification. 

Here's some more from their press release:

After a successful North American debut last month at the American Academy of Anti-Aging Medicine (A4M) in Las Vegas, UVLrx Therapeutics™ is pleased to announce the official European launch of its intravenous light therapy treatment system, the model UVL1500, at this year’s 14th Aesthetic & Anti-Aging Medicine World Congress (AMWC) from March 31st to April 2nd. Under the scientific supervision of the World Society of Interdisciplinary Anti-Aging Medicine (WOSIAM), the conference will attract over 10,000 physicians and researchers from more than 120 countries who are interested in the role of prevention in global aesthetic and anti-aging management. At the Congress, UVLrx Therapeutics™ will highlight the clinically proven benefits of light wavelengths utilized by its UVLrx™ Treatment System* for reducing inflammation, a key issue facing the entire $300 billion global industry today.

“We are especially excited that the theme of the Congress this year is prevention, given the clinically proven ability of the wavelengths utilized by the UVLrx Station™ to immediately reduce inflammation caused by such things as pathogens in the bloodstream, stress and a wide range of aesthetic surgical procedures.”

“Inflammation is a common side effect of all aesthetic procedures, whether they be facial laser treatments, injections or surgery,” said Michael Harter, CEO and president of UVLrx. “By immediately reducing inflammation caused by an aesthetic procedure, our technology will minimize pain and accelerate healing, which in turn will lead to better results and a more satisfied post-op patient.”

“Beyond aesthetic procedures, chronic inflammation can occur due to pathogens in the bloodstream and just everyday stress,” commented Rowland Hanson, chairman of UVLrx. “Left untreated, chronic inflammation accelerates the aging process and has been linked to heart disease, cancer and Alzheimer’s disease. This is why UVLrx is an essential adjunct therapy for physicians practicing both aesthetic and anti-aging medicine.”

In addition to its exhibitor booth at the Congress, UVLrx has secured an adjacent private salon for physician and distributor on-site demonstrations of its CE-marked UVLrx Station™ Model UVL1500. Moreover, UVLrx Chief Science Officer, Ryan Maloney, has been asked to speak at a special session at noon on Friday, April 1st, about the efficacy of ultraviolet light and UVLrx technology for both anti-aging and aesthetics purposes. To ensure that Congress attendees are aware of UVLrx Therapeutics’ participation at AMWC, the company has secured inside front cover advertising, as well as a two-page promotional article, in the March/April issue of PRIME Journal, which will be distributed to all Congress attendees as well as the publication’s nearly 100,000 additional print and online subscribers.

“We look forward to sharing our technology with the global aesthetics and anti-aging community at AMWC 2016 and demonstrating, in person, how the UVLrx Treatment System will benefit all physicians practicing in this field,” added UVLrx CSO Ryan Maloney. “We are especially excited that the theme of the Congress this year is prevention, given the clinically proven ability of the wavelengths utilized by the UVLrx Station™ to immediately reduce inflammation caused by such things as pathogens in the bloodstream, stress and a wide range of aesthetic surgical procedures.”

Ultraviolet blood irradiation (UBI) has been used for over a century to treat bacterial and viral infections and was awarded a Nobel Prize for treating lupus in 1903. Routinely used in hospitals around the world, this form of light therapy fell out of prominence in the U.S. with the advent of antibiotics in the 1950s. With the recent expansion of drug-resistant infections, blood irradiation offers significant advantages to pharmaceutical therapies. Furthermore, UVLrx’s intravenous system is superior to existing ultraviolet blood irradiation (UBI) in that it does not require removal of blood from the body.

About UVLrx Therapeutics

Based in Oldsmar, Florida, UVLrx Therapeutics is dedicated to evidence-based medicine in the field of light therapy and offers the first intravenous, concurrent delivery of ultraviolet-A (UVA) and multiple visible light wavelengths for treating a variety of medical indications. In addition to two Nobel Prizes and NASA-backed research, hundreds of international clinical trials have verified the health benefits of UV and other wavelengths of light utilized in the UVLrx™ Treatment System. 

Here's their website: http://uvlrx.com/