Can Photobiomodulation improve healing of category II-III pressure ulcers in frail older adults? A quasi-experimental 24-month follow-up study.
Marianne Degerman, Bo Christer Bertilson, Micael Öhman et al.
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In 30 seconds
This quasi-experimental study compared adjunctive photobiomodulation with standard care for category II and III pressure ulcers in frail adults aged 70 years or older receiving municipal home healthcare. The intervention groups included 39 people with category II and 37 with category III ulcers; matched registry controls included 117 and 111, respectively. Photobiomodulation was associated with higher healing proportions and shorter healing times (p < 0.001). Median healing times were 33 versus 153 days for category II ulcers and 70 versus 195 days for category III ulcers, comparing intervention with control.
Key findings
- Median healing time for category II ulcers was 33 days with photobiomodulation versus 153 days with standard care.
- Median healing time for category III ulcers was 70 days with photobiomodulation versus 195 days with standard care.
- The photobiomodulation groups had higher proportions of healed ulcers and significantly shorter healing times (p < 0.001).
- Recurrence within 24 months after photobiomodulation was 0% for category II ulcers and 6,7% for category III ulcers.
Why it matters
Pressure ulcers can impose substantial burden on frail older adults, and prolonged healing may complicate care. These findings suggest photobiomodulation could be associated with faster healing in category II and III ulcers in a home-healthcare population. The comparison is clinically notable, but the non-randomised design means the results do not establish that the intervention caused the observed differences.
What to keep in mind
The quasi-experimental comparison used prospective intervention groups and matched registry-based controls rather than random allocation, so differences between groups may have influenced outcomes.