Topical methyl-aminolevulinate photodynamic therapy using red light-emitting diode light for treatment of multiple actinic keratoses: A randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled study

Background: The use of light-emitting diode light offers practical advantages in photodynamic therapy (PDT) with topical methyl-aminolevulinate (MAL) for management of actinic keratoses (AK). Objective: We Sought to evaluate the efficacy of MAL PDT using red light-emitting diode light. Methods: We conducted a multicenter, double-blind, randomized study. A total of 49 patients with 363 AK lesions had 16.8% MAL cream applied under occlusion for 3 hours, and 47 patients with 360 AK lesions had vehicle cream similarly applied. The lesions were then illuminated (630 nm, light dose 37 J/cm(2)) with repeated treatment 1. week later. Complete lesion and patient (all lesions showing complete response) response rates were evaluated 3 months after last treatment. Results: MAL PDT was Superior (P < .0001) to vehicle PDT with respect to lesion complete response (86.2% vs 52.2%, odds ratio 6.9 [95% confidence interval 4.7-10.3]) and patient complete response (59.2% vs 14.9%, odds ratio 13.2 [95% confidence interval 4.1-43-1]). Limitations: The study population may not be representative of all patients with AK. Conclusion: MAL PDT using red light-emitting diode light is an appropriate treatment alternative for multiple AK lesions.