Shining A Light On Pain.(therapeutic light-emitting diodes)

The marine's voice had an edge of urgency. As he explained to physical therapist Ben Freeman of Castle Rock, Colorado, in January, his unit was about to ship out to war. But his upper back was so sore that he was hardly in fighting trim. He had tried all the usual remedies-- chiropractic, massage, electric stimulation. But he had never seen anything like the eight-inch black plastic disk Freeman had on his shelf. The device, from a company called Light-Force-Therapy, bristled with 192 red and infrared light-emitting diodes (LEDs). Freeman placed the device directly on his back for 15 minutes and then physically manipulated his neck and shoulders for another 15. The Marine came back four days later for more. In just two half-hour sessions, he noticed more improvement than he had in three years of other therapies.

Light can heal. The ancient Greeks knew that. They put sick patients in the sun to aid the curative process. But modern technology has dramatically increased the possibilities, giving us lasers and light- activated drugs. Therapeutic LEDs, the latest addition to the list, use light to penetrate deep into tissues and boost the body's own natural healing processes. Studies are showing that these new devices can help ease chronic pain, speed wound healing and prevent acute mouth ulcers in certain cancer patients. Even the U.S. Defense Department and NASA are studying LEDs as potential aids to healing injuries on the battlefield and in outer space. And plans are in the works to introduce the technology, patented in at least nine European countries, to the U.K. later this year.

Unlike the LEDs in your digital clock, these devices use just one or two wavelengths of (visible) red or (invisible) ...