Effect of biostimulation on wound healing in diabetic rats.

Abstract

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVE: Impaired wound healing is a complication of diabetes and is a serious problem in clinical practice. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the effect of biostimulation on wound healing in diabetic rats. MATERIAL AND METHODS: Thirty-six female Wistar rats weighting 250 to 300 g were used for this study. Diabetes was chemically induced with streptozotocin. Eighteen nondiabetic and 18 diabetic rats were included in the analysis. One incision was performed on the dorsum of each nondiabetic rat and the wound served as a control. Two parallel incisions were performed on the dorsum of each diabetic rat. The laser treatments were started immediately after surgery and were repeated on the second, fourth, sixth, and eighth days. A GaAlAs laser was used with an 808 nm wavelength. One wound of each diabetic rat received 10 J/cm(2) laser stimulation. RESULTS: Inflammation and re-epithelialization were evaluated in all groups, and there was a significant difference between the nondiabetic scalpel, diabetic scalpel, and diabetic scalpel + biostimulation groups. CONCLUSIONS: Treatment with laser biostimulation showed a beneficial effect on wound healing in diabetic rats. It can be concluded that low-level laser therapy (808 nm laser at 10 J/cm(2)) can have a beneficial effect on diabetic wound healing, when used at 2 d intervals over 5 d.