Adjuvant visible incoherent polarised phototherapy in chronic skin defects: a single-arm prospective observational cohort study

Purpose: Chronic skin defects, particularly venous leg ulcers, impose a substantial clinical and socio-economic burden. This single-arm observational study was undertaken to describe the healing dynamics, pain outcomes, feasibility and tolerability of adjuvant visible incoherent polarised (VIP) phototherapy in patients with chronic skin defects who were managed with full standard care, and to examine whether outcomes varied with primary diagnosis and treatment duration. Methods: A prospective, single-arm cohort of 50 patients (38 females, 12 males; mean age 69.4 years) was observed. Adjuvant VIP phototherapy (626 nm; 2 mW/cm2) was applied alongside the standard conservative and surgical wound care received by all patients, for 10 – 20 min per field, two to three times daily; the continuous emission mode was changed to a pulsed mode (5 Hz) after 7 – 10 days. Wound area was assessed planimetrically and pain on a 0 – 10 numeric scale. No sham-irradiated control group was included. Access to image files is restricted due to the clinically sensitive nature of the content (wound photographs of chronic skin defects). Files are anonymized but visually sensitive. Access will be granted upon reasonable research request.