Intense light therapy increases cardiac protection after surgery

Intense light therapy after surgery can increase a critical protein that protects cardiac tissue while reducing troponin levels, a protein that indicates heart damage related to greater mortality in patients undergoing non -cardiac surgery, according to a study of researchers from Cu Anschutz.

The study was published this week at The Annals of Translational Medicine.

The results add to a growing body of evidence that shows that intense light has a healing effect on the heart and blood vessels, a finding that could help reduce the amount of heart events that occur after surgery. Myocardial lesions in non -cardiac surgeries (MINS) occur in approximately 20% of patients and significantly increase one year’s mortality rates.

The risk of myocardial lesion increases after certain surgeries and is significantly higher in patients over 45 years. In human and animal models tests, we find that intense light can significantly reduce troponin release. High levels of troponin after non -cardiac surgery can lead to death. Blocking it could be a very novel therapy for the minutes, a disease without therapy. “

Tobias de la Garza Eckle, MD, PHD, FASA, main author of the study, Anesthesiology Professor, Cu Anschutz School of Medicine

The previous Eckle studies that use rodent models have shown that bright light can strengthen the endothelium or lining of blood vessels. Protection comes from a protein called per2 that works with Hif1a protein partners to increase the levels of other angptl4 protein, a key player in vascular health.

In this study, the researchers gave some patients who had a routine column surgery in intense light therapy for 30 minutes at dawn for five days. The light increased angptl4 levels and lowered troponin levels. Those who did not receive therapy saw troponin levels increase.

Eckle said that bright light therapy increases the amplitude of the circadian rhythm and protects the heart before and after the myocardial lesion. Protection is based on the presence of PER2 protein, but Eckle’s team discovered that Angptl4 protein therapy can protect the heart even when per2 is missing.

“This angptl4 protein therapy could be a promising strategy to reduce myocardial lesion to patients one day,” Eckle said. “We have begun to use intense light therapy in patients and we have seen similar paths are activated in humans as they are in animal models. A clinical trial will be necessary to understand the real impact of intense light therapy on myocardial lesion in non -cardiac surgery.”

This study was funded by an R56 of the National Institute of Heart, Lungs and Blood.