Overview
Levulan PDT (Photodynamic Therapy)
Levulan PDT Patient Treatment Preparation
Before Treatment Starts
Be sure to tell the clinic if you are taking any oral medications or using any topical prescription or non-prescription products for you face or scalp.
Bring adequate sun protection items with you to your appointments such as a wide-brimmed hat and an umbrella.
Avoid exposing the treated lesions and your face to sunlight and other forms of bright light for at least 48 hours. Examples include exam room examination lights, operating room lamps, tanning bed lights, and household lights at close range. Sunscreens will not protect against photosensitivity reactions caused by visible light during this time.
After Treatment
You may experience side effects following your Levulan PDT treatment. The most common side effects are:
- Burning/stinging, which could be severe, may last up to 24 hours after your blue light treatment.
- Redness and swelling which may last up to 4 weeks after your blue light treatment.
- Scaling/crusting which may last up to 4 weeks after your blue light treatment
General precautions for sun care
On a daily basis, always remember to use sunscreen and wear sun protective clothing to shield your skin from the suns damaging rays.
*Levulan Kerastick should not be taken by patients who have cutaneous photosensitivity at wavelengths at 400-450nm, porphyria, or knows allergens to porphyrins, and in patients with known sensitivity to any of the components of the Levulan Kerastick for topical solution.
Before and After
Frequently Asked Questions
Levulan Photodynamic Therapy with Sciton BBL™ is a FDA approved treatment utilizing a solution called Levulan also known as aminolevulanic acid or kerastick. Levulan acne treatment inactivates the bacteria that trigger acne, exfoliates the skin to unclog pores, and decreases the activity of overactive sebaceous glands in the skin. ALA/PDT treatment has the unique ability to minimize pores and reduce oil glands, effectively treating moderate to severe acne vulgaris, acne rosacea, sebaceous gland hyperplasia, actinic keratosisand even improve the appearance of some acne scars.
The Levulan solution is applied to the skin and will be absorbed by the skin for 15-30 minutes (or up to one hour). The skin will become highly photosensitive, meaning that skin will be very sensitive to light. At the appropriate time, the solution is washed off the skin and the patient undergoes an intense pulse light treatment with the Sciton BBL™. Treatment sessions last 30 minutes.
After treatment is completed, almost all patients experienced some temporary reddening and some patients experienced minimal swelling of the acne, and surrounding skin for 1-2 days. Peeling may occur for a few days. This is transient and usually associated with minimal to no downtime. Patients are must avoid the sun for 24-48 hours after Photodynamic therapy.
Patients with severe sun damaged skin, tone changes and skin laxity will also see improvement in quality of their skin. Photodynamic Therapy improves the entire facial area, creating one color, texture and tone. Conditions that can be treated include: acne, severely sun damaged skin, enlarged pores, precancerous sun spots (actinic keratoses, skin cancer prevention), enlarged oil glands (sebaceous hyperplasia), irregular pigmentation, freckling, liver spots (solar lentigenes), and uneven skin texture
One Levulan and BBL™ combination treatment, can achieve the same results of 4 treatments of BBL™ alone. At least 2-4 monthly sessions will be necessary and more may be needed. However, there is downtime with Photodynamic therapy and strict sun avoidance is necessary for 48 hours post treatment
