WO2002072199A1

WO2002072199A1 - Irradiation arrangement and method for the treatment of acne and acne scars

Info

Publication number: WO2002072199A1
Application number: PCT/DE2002/000775
Authority: WO
Inventors: Jan Henrik Wilkens; Rolf Stirner
Original assignee: Optomed Optomedical Systems Gmbh; Spectrometrix Optoelectronic Systems Gmbh
Priority date: 2001-03-08
Filing date: 2002-03-05
Publication date: 2002-09-19
Also published as: US20030004501A1; WO2002072199A8; DE50212701D1; US7985219B2

Abstract

The invention relates to an irradiation arrangement (1) and a method for the treatment of acne, comprising at least one irradiation source (2), whereby the irradiation source (2) emits a broadband optical spectrum in the range of 320 to at least 540 nm, the irradiation source (2) may be operated in a pulsed manner and/or is displaceable relative to the surface for treatment, the pulse energy is between 0.05-10 J/cm2 and the irradiation strength of the irradiation peak is between 0.5 W/cm2 and 100 kW/cm2.

Description

Irradiation device and method for treating acne and acne scars

The invention relates to a radiation arrangement and a method for treating acne and acne scars.

It is known to treat acne, a skin disease caused by bacterial growth in clogged follicles of areas of the sebaceous gland with cornification disorders, with blue light in the range from 400 to 440 nm without substantial UVA components, the success remaining limited. Please refer to the technical article "V. Sigurdsson et al. Phototherapy of Acne Vulgaris with visible Light, Dermatologie 1997; 194; Vol. 3, 256-260" with further references. This form of therapy was initiated so that acne follicles fluoresce red as part of the dermatological examination with a so-called "woodlamp". The storage of large amounts of porphyrins in the propionibacterium acne has been proven to be the source of the fluorescence. (Mc Ginley et al., Facial follicular porphyrin fluorescence. Correlation with age and density of propionibacterium acnes, Br. J. Dermatol Vol. 102., Vol. 3, 437-441, 1980). Since porphyrins have their main absorption (Soret band) around 420 nm, it was for Meffert et al. obvious to treat bacterial acne follicles with blue light. The long-wave absorption band of the porphyrins is 630 nm with a penetration depth of 4 mm, which is best suited and also used for photodynamic follicle treatment.

Such an irradiation arrangement is known from WO 00/02491, which comprises at least one narrow-band spectrum in the range from 405 to 440 nm. The wavelength intervals of 610 - 670 nm or 520 - 550 nm are given as alternative or cumulative spectral ranges. To further improve the efficiency, it is proposed to enrich the area to be irradiated with oxygen by applying emulsions enriched with oxygen to the area to be irradiated before or during the irradiation. The irradiance is there between 10 - 500 mW / cm ² .

Furthermore, a radiation arrangement for the treatment of acne is known from WO 00/64537. The area to be treated is treated with UV light in the range of 320 - 350 nm. The energy that is radiated in is

1 - 5 J / cm ² specified. When using a laser, the pulse energy should be between 5 - 25 mJ / cm ² , so that irradiation intensities of approx. 2 MW / cm ² are achieved with pulse lengths of 10 ns. The known radiation arrangement is based on the knowledge that sun-like spectra are not suitable for the treatment of acne, but rather can even trigger episodes of acne.

EP 0 565 331 B1 discloses a device for treating vascular diseases in an area of the skin, comprising a housing with an incoherent light source, mounted in the housing and suitable for producing pulsed light for the treatment and an opening in the housing which determines an outgoing light beam which is transmitted to the skin treatment area without passing through an optical fiber cable and which has a wider radiation area than devices with optical fiber cables, the

The device includes a low frequency filter to cut out the visible and ultraviolet parts of the spectrum and the incoherent light source produces an output light beam with wavelengths in the range between 300 and 1000 nm. The light source is electrically connected to a variable pulse width generator circuit to provide a controlled time pulse with a width between 1 and 10 ms, the emerging light beam on the skin producing an energy density between 30 and 100 J / cm ² , so that the emerging light beam after passing through the above-mentioned, the low-wavelength filter can penetrate as deeply as desired into the skin without burning the skin in order to heat a blood vessel lying under the skin and within the skin treatment area and in Blood vessel causing blood coagulation. The blood coagulation described there should be avoided in the treatment of acne, so that the device described there is unsuitable for the treatment of acne or other superficial skin diseases.

DE 93 21 497 U1 discloses a therapeutic treatment device which is operated with an incoherent light source and emits light pulses, preferably using flash lamps which emit in the wavelength range from 300-1000 nm. Coagulation of blood vessels is also sought there. The specified

Energy densities per pulse are between 30-100 J / cm ² , so that reference can be made to the comments on EP 0 565 331 B1.

Immunological investigation results have shown no abnormal reactions in patients with acne, so that immunoligical processes in the

Primary acne formation probably doesn't matter. Secondarily it comes e.g. by bursting the epithelia of the closed comedones to bring the comedone heads (such as horn cells, hair, sebum, free fatty acids and bacteria) into the connective tissue. This creates a foreign body reaction, which is often accompanied by a violent inflammation in the acne skin, the so-called secondary inflammatory efflorescence.

After the inflammation has subsided, a third category of acne fluorescence arises, which characterize a severe acne course that was previously experienced and, in particular, cosmetically disturb. The acne-related scars range from small, closed comedone-like scars to worm-like sunken scars and large, keloid-shaped atrophic scars.

The known radiation arrangements for the treatment of acne are each technically very complex and therefore cost-intensive, especially when the high energy densities are required in the selected spectral ranges become.

The known radiation arrangements are unable to treat the post-inflammatory acne fluorescence without tissue coagulation or tissue ablation. Thereby the treatment of acne scars is unsatisfactorily solved. The excision of crater-like scarring is invasive and carries a risk of infection. Acne scars on the face can often be treated cryosurgery with liquid nitrogen using high-speed grinders, keloid-shaped acne scars. These processes are also very complex and costly.

The invention is therefore based on the technical problem of creating an irradiation arrangement and a method for treating acne and acne scars which can be implemented inexpensively and are highly efficient.

The solution to the technical problem results from the subjects with the features of claims 1 and 15. Further advantageous refinements of the invention result from the subclaims.

For this purpose, the radiation source is designed as a broadband radiation source with a wavelength range of at least 320 to at least 540 nm, which can be operated in pulse mode and / or can be moved relative to the treatment area, the pulse energy per pulse being between 0.05-10 J / cm ² and the radiation intensity the radiation peaks of the optical pulses are between 0.5 W / cm ² and 100 kW / cm ² . At least 320 nm means that the radiation source can also generate smaller wavelengths, but these are not transmitted to the area to be treated, but are suppressed beforehand. Wavelengths larger than 540 nm, however, can also be emitted.

According to the invention, use is made of the fact that, contrary to what is stated in the literature, the formation of singlet Oxygen is increased by orders of magnitude compared to cw operation with the same energy. Surprisingly, it is found that by using pulses the mean spectral irradiance can be suppressed below the threshold values known from the literature, although the effectiveness is increased. Since, in contrast to the statements in WO 00/64537, visible spectral ranges are also effective for treatment, inexpensive broadband radiation sources can be used, so that cost-intensive lasers or filter measures are unnecessary. The reason for the acne flare-ups with solar-like radiation sources is probably not in the visible portion, but in the UVB portion up to 320 nm, which is also not used according to the invention. Another advantage over WO 00/02491 is that a higher power or energy of the blue spectral component reaches the follicle. Since the follicles sit relatively deep under the skin, normally only a fraction of the blue spectral range between 400 - 500 reaches the follicles, so that

Irradiation arrangements with a pure blue spectrum with relatively high power must work. On the one hand, this is due to the low penetration depth of the blue spectral component and, on the other hand, presumably due to swell doses due to the body's own antioxidants. This is also a possible explanation for Sigurdsson's modest results, where work was only carried out with low irradiance levels below or in the range of these threshold values. Surprisingly, according to the invention, a mean irradiance of approximately 1 order of magnitude below the threshold values of 60 mW / cm ² described in WO00 / 02491 and below the area power used by Sirgudsson and Meffert is good

Efficiency can be achieved if the peak power or irradiance of the pulse only significantly exceeds the described threshold values for a short time. Clinical studies show that the efficiency of pulsed acne light treatment can be surprisingly increased by a factor of 10 to 20 compared to cw treatment with an identical spectrum. The described effect for the acne treatment in WO 00/02491 is probably a superficial bacterial killing by the blue component, whereas the follicles are essentially only reached by the green or red spectral ranges from 520 - 550 nm or 610 - 670 nm. On the other hand, pulsed operation with the same cw power temporarily radiates with extremely higher powers compared to cw operation, so that a constant offset due to threshold values is less effective

Weight drops. Thus, more blue light effectively reaches the follicle and can contribute to the formation of singlet oxygen. According to the invention, not only the inflammatory acne scars, but also the cosmetically disruptive acne scars can be treated with very good results since, surprisingly, the often pigmented scars are discolored with a simultaneous flattening of the scar. As a result, the radiation arrangement not only suppresses the acute inflammation, but already existing acne scars are considerably reduced. This happens in particular because the incident light is trapped in the acne scar via the formation of singlet oxygen

Pigments fade and presumably radically mediated skin tissue remodeling that improves or eliminates the signs of aging, wrinkles, epidermal and dermal atrophy, skin roughness, irregular pigmentation, telangiectasias, sagging skin and enlarged pores. The younger skin appearance is associated with a dermal metabolic change triggered by the radiation arrangement, in particular in the area of the extracellular dermal matrix proteins. There is an increase in procollagen, collagen, elastin and collagenases as a sign of remodeling of the skin structure triggered by the radiation. As a result, the cosmetically disruptive skin changes regress significantly or even completely.

The details of the power or energy density always relate to the skin surface to be irradiated, the irradiation arrangement preferably being placed directly on the skin.

The effective pulse lengths are preferably between 1 μs and 500 ms. This relatively wide range is due to the fact that the preferred effective pulse lengths for pulsed radiation sources and relatively moving radiation sources in the form of a scanner are different. It should be noted that the scanner is preferred for the treatment of large acne.

The effective pulse lengths for the flash lamps are preferably between 1 μs and 50 ms, particularly preferably between 10 μs and 10 ms and further preferably between 100-600 μs, the pulse on and off times being asymmetrical.

When configured as a scanner, the effective pulse lengths are preferably between 1 ms and 500 ms, further preferably between 20-100 ms. The effective pulse length is understood to mean the time that lies between reaching 50% of the maximum output and falling to 50% of the maximum output. The longer pulse timeouts in relation to the effective pulse length serve in particular for the post-diffusion of oxygen. The ratio of pulse length and pulse timeout is preferably between 3 and 3000 for the scanner and between 100 and 100,000 for the flash lamp.

In a further preferred embodiment, the frequency at which the radiation source is pulsed is between 0.01-100 Hz, more preferably between 0.05-50 Hz and even more preferably between 0.3-3 Hz, with lower effective being higher at higher frequencies Pulse lengths and smaller pulse energies can be used.

Just as the effective pulse lengths depend on whether a pulsed radiation source or a relatively moving radiation source is used, the preferred irradiance levels or power densities per pulse are different. In embodiments with a pulsed radiation source, the irradiance per pulse is between 1 W / cm ² -100 kW / cm ² , preferably between 50 W / cm ² -50 kW / cm ² , more preferably between 500 W / cm ² - 10 kW / cm ² and particularly preferably between 1 kW / cm ² -5 kW / cm ² . The energy density per pulse is between 50 mJ / cm ² -10J / cm ² , preferably between 100 mJ / cm ² -2J / cm ² and particularly preferably between 300-1000 mJ / cm ² .

In embodiments with a scanner, the radiation source also being able to be pulsed, the irradiance per pulse is between 500 mW / cm ² -5000W / cm ² , preferably between 1-500 W / cm ² and particularly preferably between 2-300 W / cm ² and more preferably between 3-100 W / cm ² . The energy density per pulse is between 50 m J / cm ² - 10 J / cm ² , preferably between 100-3000 mJ / cm ² and particularly preferably between 150-1000 mJ / cm ² and more preferably between 200-500 mJ / cm ^2nd

The generation of longer effective pulse lengths is hardly or not at all possible with the known flash lamps. However, this can be advantageous for the selective heating of the sebum follicle area and the hair shaft in order to achieve a liquefaction of the obstructing taig concrements and an induced disruption of the taig production. Another positive effect could be a reduction in the cornification or exfoliation of epithelial cells in the hair shaft area. However, such longer pulse lengths can be simulated in their thermokinetic effect by a targeted sequence control. For this purpose, for example, 100 pulses with an effective pulse length of 100 μs and a pulse timeout of 900 μs are irradiated, with no pulses following for 10-1000 ms. Then 100 pulses are radiated in again. The effective pulse lengths used here are between 50-300 μs.

In a further preferred embodiment, the radiation source is as Xe flash lamp trained. These commercially available Xe flash lamps are very inexpensive and emit sufficiently in the desired spectral range between 320 -540 nm and 320-670 nm. For this purpose, reference is made, for example, to US 4,167,669 or EP 0 565 331, the pulse energies described there for However, teaching according to the invention are too large. Xe

Flash lamps are more or less comparable to a black body, depending on the load. Therefore, Xe flash lamps typically emit from 200-2000 nm. Due to the cell toxicity of the wavelengths between 200-320 nm, this wavelength range must be suppressed by appropriate filter measures. It is also possible to use the Xe

Doping the flash lamp with metals or metal halides in order to specifically amplify the emission of certain spectral components. Gallium, indium and / or their halides are particularly suitable for this in order to amplify the wavelength range between 400-500 nm.

In a further preferred embodiment, the radiation source is assigned a device for suppressing the spectral components from 320-400 nm and / or for transforming the UV components into the visible range. This takes into account the fact that the possible side effects of UVA components on the cell are completely avoided without this being reflected in a noticeable reduction in the effectiveness of the radiation arrangement. If the UVA components are filtered out, inexpensive commercially available UVA filters can be used. However, the UV components are preferably transformed into the visible spectral range by means of suitable inorganic phosphors and organic laser dyes. Films made of silicone elastomers with inorganic phosphors have proven particularly useful. Because of the high absorption of the porphyrins around 420 nm, blue-emitting phosphors are preferably used, which can optionally be combined with green in the range from 520 to 550 nm and / or red in the range from 610 to 670 nm. Alternatively, fluoropolymers such as Teflon can be used instead of the silicone elastomers. In the Using phosphors to transform the unwanted spectral components, other radiation sources such as deuterium flash lamps can also be used, which have a high yield in the UV range, which can then be transformed into the desired spectral range by the phosphors.

Another possible radiation source is a gallium iodide mercury discharge lamp pulsed in the overload range. Overload is understood here when the maximum discharge current is at least 3-1000 times the nominal lamp current, the pulse discharge current preferably being between 15-1500 A / cm ² cross-sectional area of the discharge vessel. Commercially available cw-operated metal vapor-doped mercury halide lamps are described, for example, in US Pat. Nos. 3,521,111; US 3,540,789 and WO 96/13851.

From US 5,184,044 it can be seen that, taking into account the lamp geometry, the lamp power of 20 W and the voltage drop of 55 V, a lamp current of 8 A / cm ² cross-sectional area of the discharge vessel corresponds to the maximum sensible lamp load, since there is already an inversion in the area the indium resonance is coming. Another

Increasing the current density would increase the inversion until erasure.

For this reason, these have so far not been operated in overload operation, since it was known from plasma-physical investigations that narrow-band emission spectra can only be displayed with a comparatively low excitation energy. In overload operation, the vapor pressure in the discharge plasma rises so much that the line emission is absorbed by the surrounding plasma and, paradoxically, there is a considerable weakening or even complete extinction of the resonance line emission at high discharge pressures. Examples include the mercury resonance line at 254 nm, the sodium resonance line at 488 nm and the indium resonance line at 450 nm, where there is a loss of even with moderate overload Spectral intensity is coming.

Surprisingly, however, it was discovered that gallium-doped medium or high-pressure mercury iodide lamps do not show any broadening or even inversion of the gallium resonance lines at 403 and 417 nm, even with a 100-1000-fold overload. A gallium iodide-doped mercury discharge lamp operated under nominal load with a discharge current of 1.5 A / cm ² cross-sectional area of the discharge vessel could be operated in pulsed operation up to 1000 A / cm ² cross-sectional area of the discharge vessel without causing an attenuation or frequency inversion of the

Gallium resonance lines came. A possible explanation for this is that the metallic gallium has a boiling point of approx. 2200 ° C, so that the relevant gallium vapor pressure can probably be neglected even under impulse conditions. In the plasma, the mercury iodide decomposes into mercury and iodine. Under the discharge conditions, the iodine combines with the gallium in the form of the unstable compound Gal ₃ . Gallium iodide shows a strong increase in vapor pressure even at low temperatures. The lack of inversion of the gallium resonance line could now be explained by the fact that the gallium iodide only behaves stable up to a certain pressure and that when the pressure increases there is a massive, presumably kinetically extremely rapid disintegration of the compound. As a result, a relatively constant gallium vapor pressure occurs despite increasing high temperatures during the pulse. The condensed gallium therefore does not contribute to the discharge or possible self-absorption. The unexpected effect could therefore be paradoxical

Constancy of the gallium vapor pressure over a temperature range of 200 to almost 2200 ° C. Mercury iodide breaks down early into mercury and iodine, so that the iodine is available for a gallium compound and the mercury vapor pressure increases sharply with the energy fed in. In this way, according to the cross section of the corresponding gallium plasma, the gallium resonance is subject to an excitation by the short-wave which increases proportionally to the energy fed in Mercury electron transitions are available. Due to the relative constancy of the gallium vapor pressure, almost all of this energy can be emitted as a resonance line spectrum.

During overload operation, there is a brief overheating, especially of the tungsten filaments, which, however, can radiate significantly more heat when the temperature increases in accordance with Planck's law. A modulated lamp can therefore be operated with an increased base load, since the supply of the energy supplied is only considerably more efficient than with a lamp in normal operation only because of the temperature increase. It turned out that a 1 kW lamp can be operated with a continuous load of approx. 2-20 kW. Spectral measurements have shown that in a 1000 W cw operation gallium-doped mercury iodide lamp approx. 400 mW / m ² in the spectral range between 400-440 nm hit the skin. This irradiance can be reduced to an average irradiance of approx. 2-4 mW / cm ^{2 in} Simmer operation, whereby the irradiance is briefly increased by up to four to five orders of magnitude under impulse load, so that irradiance levels between 2 and 400 W / cm ² hit the skin. The ratio of the pulse lengths is preferably in the range between 3 and 300. This simple pulse light source in the spectral range of 320-540 nm can also be used for other technical applications, such as dental plastic curing, printing technology applications, surface sealing, pipe renovation with light-curing hoses, plastic curing in the range of DVD production and the acceleration of other photochemical reactions which are influenced by radical mechanisms of photoabsorption in the UV blue region of the spectrum.

The ratio of gallium or gallium additive to mercury should preferably be between 1:10 to 1: 100. In the power range of 400 W, a mixing ratio of 1-5 mg gallium iodide to 44 mg mercury is preferably used. Another typical lamp consists of a cylindrical quartz tube with a diameter of 13.5 mm and a volume of the discharge vessel of 20 cm ³ . The distance between the electrodes is approx. 14 cm. Such a lamp is filled with 20 mg Hg, 3 mg mercury iodide, 1 mg gallium and argon at a pressure of 3.57 mmHg.

The efficiency of the radiation arrangement can be further increased by increasing the oxygen concentration. In addition to the measures described in WO 00/02491, this can also be achieved very simply by an inspiratory oxygen supply via an oxygen mask.

Due to the radiated pulse energy there is a noticeable increase in the skin temperature, so that preferably a cooling device is provided for the surface to be irradiated. In the simplest case, this can be designed as air cooling. Likewise, the radiation source can be a

Cooling device can be assigned, which is designed for example as air cooling or another thermal dissipation measure such as cooling plates. Furthermore, the fluorescent film is preferably also cooled, but this is preferably cooled by water cooling.

To increase the radiated power in the direction of the surface to be treated, the radiation source is preferably formed with a reflector. A preferred type of reflector is a paraboloid reflector, the radiation source being arranged at a focal point of the paraboloid. In principle, however, reflectors in the form of spherical shells or similar shapes can also be used.

The irradiation area for a mobile device is preferably in the range from 1 to 200 cm ² , since in the case of planar irradiation the penetration depth increases in comparison to punctiform radiation sources, which is advantageous here for reaching the deeper follicles. The mobile embodiment allows the sequential irradiation of various individual acne areas, as a rule occur in the face, neck and upper part of the back and chest.

Alternatively, embodiments are also possible in which larger areas are irradiated simultaneously. One possible embodiment is one

Large number of small flash lamps, for example sewing 30-60 small Xe flash lamps into a fabric. This consists, for example, of PTFE or a PTFE derivative. Such a fabric can be coated in a highly reflective manner by direct metal vapor deposition, the desired air permeability being retained while water being repelled at the same time.

When using a large number of small radiation sources in close proximity to the object to be irradiated, the use of an imaging reflector can be dispensed with. With the help of soft, radiation-transparent spacers such as silicone elastomers, cooling and back-ventilation of the filters, fluorescent films and the irradiated skin areas is easily possible using commercially available fans such as CPU fans.

In a further preferred embodiment, a device for generating mechanical vibrations is assigned to the irradiation arrangement, the mechanical vibrations preferably being generated at different times from the optical pulses. The sebum, which is sometimes already very solid, is heated and liquefied by the optical pulses. The liquefied sebum is virtually shaken out of the pore by the subsequent mechanical vibration.

In a preferred embodiment, the device is designed as an electrodynamic transducer. In this case, a pressure or respectively is preferably by suitable polarity of opposite flat coils. Tractive force exerted on the surface of the skin, wherein the current of the radiation source can be used to control the coils. Alternatively, the device can also be designed as a photoelastic transducer, where the sudden expansion of a material due to the optical pulse Generation of mechanical vibration is exploited.

The invention is explained in more detail below on the basis of a preferred exemplary embodiment. The figures show:

1 shows a cross section through an irradiation arrangement,

Fig. 2 shows a spectrum of the radiation source with and without

Fluorescent film, the relative irradiance being shown over the wavelength, FIG. 3 a skin cross-sectional representation with acne follicles,

Fig. 4 is a schematic diagram of an electrodynamic

Transducers, Fig. 5 is a schematic diagram of a photo-elastic

Transducers, Fig. 6 curves of the relative irradiance of a gallium-doped mercury iodide lamp in cw operation and pulsed overload operation, Fig. 7 the spectral energy density of a gallium-doped

Mercury iodide lamp at different input powers,

Fig. 8 curves of the relative irradiance of a

Sodium vapor lamp in cw and pulse overload operation, Fig.9 is a schematic circuit arrangement for

Pulse operation of a gallium-doped mercury iodide lamp with two phases of a three-phase network and

10 shows an alternative circuit arrangement with a

Capacitor bank.

The radiation arrangement 1 comprises a broadband radiation source 2, which is preferably designed as an Xe flash lamp. The radiation source 2 is arranged in a focal point of a paraboloid reflector 3, which is open on the side facing away from the focal point. The exit surface at the open The end of the paraboloid reflector 3 is defined by a preferably adjustable diaphragm 4. The size of the surface to be irradiated can thus be adjusted by means of the adjustable diaphragm 4. The radiation source 2 and the paraboloid reflector 3 are arranged in a housing 5. The housing 5 is preferably designed with a handpiece 6, by means of which the irradiation arrangement 1 can simply be placed on a surface 7 to be treated. A fluorescent film 8, which is doped with phosphor particles, is arranged between the radiation source 2 and the surface 7 to be treated. The fluorescent film 8 can also be stretched directly in the area of the radiation source 2 or via the diaphragm 4.

The fluorescent film 8 is preferably arranged such that it is easy to replace. This simplifies the exchange necessary due to aging processes, but also the flexible use of fluorescent films with different fluorescent particles. Furthermore, if the fluorescent film 8 is arranged externally, it can be easily disinfected. The electrical connections and the circuit for generating the variable pulse widths are not shown here for reasons of clarity.

2 shows a spectrum of a Xe flash lamp used with and without a fluorescent film. The spectrum with fluorescent film is shown in dashed lines. The fluorescent film is a silicone elastomer that is doped with inorganic phosphors that preferentially emit in the blue spectral range from 400 to 450 nm. The fluorescent film almost cuts off the UV range between 280 - 400 nm and transforms it into the visible blue range of 400 ^■ 450 nm. The remaining NIR portion is not shown here.

The Xe flash lamp is clocked at a frequency between 0.01-100 Hz, preferably between 0.1 and 10 Hz, although the effective pulse lengths are only between 10 μs and 10 ms. The optical pulse energies are between 0.5-10 J / cm ² , preferably between 1-3 J / cm ² . The acne treatment takes place over several days or weeks, the daily treatment duration being between 1 and 60 minutes, preferably between 5-10 minutes.

3 shows a cross section through the skin in the region of a hair 9. The hair 9 is connected to an enlarged and inflamed sebum gland 12 via a narrowed execution duct 10 with a hair shaft region 11 overfilled with sebum and inflamed. In a cw operation with blue light, the predominant part in the upper skin layer above the hair shaft area is already absorbed due to the low penetration depth (1 / e) of the blue light and the overcoming of the body's threshold values for blue light, which is shown schematically by the short arrow 13 is. In contrast, in pulse mode, the power density during the pulse is much greater at the same average power density in accordance with the ratio of the effective pulse length to the frequency, so that the constant weakening is less important due to the body's own threshold values. Since the effective power available is thus greater, a larger absolute proportion of the blue light also reaches the lower hair shaft regions 11 or the sebum gland 12 and can contribute to the local generation of singlet oxygen there, which is shown by the longer arrow 14.

A schematic representation of an electrodynamic transducer is shown schematically in FIG. The device for generating mechanical vibrations comprises a frame 15 and a transparent, non-compatible stamp 16, which is movably mounted in the frame 15, the stamp 16 partly resting on the skin via an ultrasound gel 17 as a coupling medium. Flat coils 18, 19 are arranged on the edge regions of the frame 15 or stamp 16, each lying opposite one another. In the simplest case, the flat coils are designed as flat copper rings. The pulsed light 20 emitted by the radiation source 2 is absorbed by the sebum plug 21 and the sebum 22 underneath. In doing so absorbed the sebum plug 21 in the visible spectral range and in the NIR, whereas the sebum 22 preferably absorbs in the NIR. This causes the sebum 21 or sebum 22 to heat up and liquefy. Appropriate polarization of the flat coils 18, 19 leads to an attraction or repulsion between the flat coils 18, 19. Since the frame 15 is fixed, the frame 15 moves Stamp 16 towards or away from the skin, which is illustrated by the double arrow 23. The liquefied sebum plug 21 is released by this shaking movement and the sebum plug 21 and the sebum 22 are sucked out.

5 shows an alternative embodiment for generating mechanical vibrations. The device comprises a first layer 24 made of an optically transparent material with a high sound conduction speed, a second layer 25 made of an optically transparent carrier material and a third layer 26. On and / or in the second layer there are light-absorbing dye molecules 27 which strip, for example - Or are arranged in a ring. Due to the absorption of incident pulsed light 20, there is a shock-like thermal expansion of the dye molecules 27, as a result of which a pressure wave 28 is built up. This pressure wave 28 is non-directional and spreads up and down. The pressure wave 28, which propagates upwards, is reflected on the first layer 24 and radiated downwards again. The third layer 26, on the other hand, serves to deliberately delay the travel time of the light and the pressure wave 28, so that the pressure wave 28 only reaches the sebum plug 21 after the light pulse has warmed and liquefied it. The third layer 26 can also be omitted if targeted near-field effects are used. For this purpose, local maxima are generated that are closer to λ / 2 at the skin surface at frequencies in the kHz range.

6 shows the relative irradiance of a 1000 W mercury iodide

Lamp shown in cw normal mode at 1000 W (curve a) and in pulse overload mode (curve b), with the average cw power in pulse mode being 1500 W. is. As can clearly be seen, there is a significant increase in emissions even with a small overload. 7 shows the spectral energy density in the case of such a gallium-doped mercury iodide lamp with a nominal power of 1000 W when the input power is varied. The curve a) represents the energy density in cw normal operation at 1000 W. The curve b) represents the spectral energy density under 100 W and the curve c) represents the energy density at 10 kW input power. as well as overload were operated in cw mode. However, as can clearly be seen, the spectral lines are retained in both cases and there is no inversion of the spectral lines, but rather an almost proportional increase in the emission. In contrast to this, the inversion of the spectral lines in a sodium vapor lamp which is operated in pulse mode with 700 W at 230 W nominal power can be clearly seen in FIG. In comparison, the relative irradiance for nominal cw operation is shown in course a).

FIG. 9 shows a first circuit arrangement for operating a gallium-doped mercury iodide lamp for pulse overload operation. The circuit includes a gallium-doped mercury iodide lamp 30, an ignition rod 31, a current zero continuity detector 32, one

Pulse generator 33, a first relay K1 and a second relay K2, and a starter switch S1 and a pulse switch 34. The two relays K1 and K2 are both connected to a neutral conductor N and a first phase V1 of a three-phase network. The gallium-doped mercury iodide lamp 30 is connected to a second phase V2 of the three-phase network via an auxiliary contact of the starter switch S1. Via a second auxiliary contact of the starter switch S1, the first phase V1 is connected to the ignition rod 31 via the current-zero continuity detector 32 via a coil arrangement. The coils L1 and L2 are connected in series. A third coil L3 with a contact K2 associated with the second relay K2 is connected in parallel with this series connection. A first associated contact K1.1 of the first relay K1 is connected in parallel with the first coil L1. Between a second associated contact K1.2 of the first relay K1 is connected to the second relay K2 and the pulse switch 34. The principle of operation of the circuit is as follows:

First the starter switch S1 is closed, whereby the two associated auxiliary contacts also close. As a result, contact K1.1 closes and contact K1.2 opens or remains open. The first phase V1 of the three-phase network is connected to the ignition rod 31 via the coil L2 via the closed contact K1.1, the coil L2 acting as a series reactor. This switching state remains until the gallium-doped

Mercury iodide lamp 30 has reached its normal operating conditions. The relay K1 then drops out, which is designed, for example, as a switch-on wiper. The drop from the relay K1 causes the contact K1.1 to open and the contact K1.2 to close. This activates the relay K2 and simultaneously switches the coil L1 in series with the coil L2, the coil L1 acting as a Simmer coil. Since the pulse switch 34 is still open, the contact K2 remains open. In this state, the gallium-doped mercury iodide lamp 30 runs in a Simmer. For pulse operation, the current-zero crossing detector 32 now detects a zero crossing of the current of the first phase V1 of the three-phase network and signals this to the pulse generator 33. This switches the pulse switch 34 so that the relay K2 is energized and the contact K2 is closed. As a result, the coil L3 is connected in parallel and the total inductance drops, as a result of which the ignition rod 31 receives an overload pulse. At the end of the pulse, the pulse generator 33 opens the pulse switch 34 at the current zero crossing. This opens the contact K2 and the gallium-doped mercury iodide lamp 30 is operated again in the Simmer by the series connection of the coils L1 and L2 until the next pulse is triggered by the pulse generator 33 becomes.

FIG. 10 shows an alternative embodiment with a capacitor bank, the same elements with respect to FIG. 9 being the same Reference numerals are provided. In contrast to the embodiment according to FIG. 9, a triac 35 is arranged between the ignition rod 31 and the gallium-doped mercury iodide lamp 30, the driver 36 of which is controlled by the pulse generator 33. The capacitor bank 38 with the electrodes of the gallium-doped is via an IGBT 37 or the coil L3

Mercury iodide lamp 30 connected, the driver 39 of the IGBT 37 is also controlled by the pulse generator 33. The mode of operation is as follows: The starter switch S1 is closed again, whereby the contact K1.1 closes and the contact K1.2 opens. The gallium-doped mercury iodide lamp 30 is raised to operating conditions via the switched-on triac 35. Then the relay K1 drops out again and the contact K1.1 opens and K1.2 closes. The gallium-doped mercury iodide lamp 30 is then operated in the Simmer via the series connection of the coils L1 and L2 and the pulse generator 33 is activated. For pulse operation, the current-zero crossing detector 32 then detects the zero crossing and transmits this information to the pulse generator 33. The latter then controls the drivers 36 and 39 so that the triac 35 blocks and the IGBT 37 conducts. As a result, the capacitor bank is switched to the gallium-doped mercury iodide lamp 30 and this is separated from the mains voltage. At the end of the pulse, conversely, the IGBT 37 is blocked when the current passes through zero and the triac 35 is switched through, so that the lamp 30 again runs in the Simmer via the two coils L1 and L2. It should be noted here that if coils were previously mentioned, this generally means inductors. The following values for the coils L1-L3 serve to illustrate the size relationships: L1 = 500 mH; L2 = 150 mH and L3 = 7 mH.

The following values for current and current density are set, whereby the values for cw normal operation are given below for comparison:

Pulse mode: l _βff = 40 A or _11.8 A / cm ² , l _pβak = 55 A or 16.2 A / cm ² ; Simmer operation: l _eff = 1, 2 A or 0.35 A / cm ² , l _peak = 1, 7 A or 0.5 A / cm ² ; Normal operation: l _eff = 5 A or 1.5 A / cm ² , l _peal = 7 A or 2 A / cm ² ;

Claims

Irradiation arrangement and method for treating acne and acne scars Patent claims:

1. Irradiation arrangement for the treatment of acne, acne scars and skin aging, comprising at least one radiation source, characterized in that the radiation source (2) emits a broadband optical spectrum in the range from at least 320 to at least 540 nm

Irradiation source (2) can be operated in pulse mode and/or can be moved relative to the area to be treated and the pulse energy is between 0.05-10 J/cm ² and the irradiance of the irradiation peaks of the optical pulses is greater than 0.5 W/cm ² and is less than 100 kW/cm ² .

2. Irradiation arrangement according to claim 1, characterized in that the effective pulse length is between 1 μs - 500 ms.

3. Irradiation arrangement according to claim 2, characterized in that the irradiation source (2) is clocked at a frequency of 0.01 - 100 Hz.

4. Irradiation arrangement according to one of the preceding claims, characterized in that the irradiation source (2) as Xe or

Deuterium flash lamp or as a gallium-doped mercury iodide lamp, which is operated with pulse overload.

5. Irradiation arrangement according to one of the preceding claims, characterized in that the irradiation source (2) has a

Device for suppressing the spectral components from 320 - 400 nm and/or for transforming the UV components into the visible range assigned.

6. Irradiation arrangement according to claim 5, characterized in that a phosphor film (8) is arranged in front of the irradiation source (2).

7. Irradiation arrangement according to claim 6, characterized in that the phosphor film (8) consists of a silicone elastomer and is doped with inorganic phosphor particles.

8. Irradiation arrangement according to claim 6 or 7, characterized in that the phosphor film (8) with at least one of the following phosphor particles, fluorescent in the spectral ranges 370-460 nm [Sr ₂ P ₂ O ₇ : Eu, Sr ₅ (PO ₄ ) ₃ CI:Eu, BaMg ₂ AI ₁₆ O ₂₇ :Eu, Ca W0 ₄ : Pb; (Sr, Ca,

Ba) ₅ (P0 ₄ ) ₃ CI:Eu; Sr ₂ P ₂ 0 ₇ :Sn; (Ba, Ca) ₅ (PO ₄ ) ₃ CI:Eu)] and/or 510-560 nm

[ ZnSI0 ₄ :Mn; MgAl^O^Ce.Tb.Mn; YBO ₃ :Tb; LaPO ₄ :Ce,Tb] and/or 610-670 nm [Y ₂ O ₃ :Eu; Y(P,V)0 ₄ :Eu; CaSIO ₃ :Pb,Mn; (Sr,Mg) ₃ (P0 ₄ ) ₂ :Sn;

3.5MgO ^* 0.5MgF ₂ ^* GeO ₂ :Mn ] is doped.

9. Irradiation arrangement according to one of the preceding claims, characterized in that the irradiation arrangement (1) is assigned means for topical and/or inspiratory oxygen supply.

10. Irradiation arrangement according to one of the preceding claims, characterized in that the irradiation arrangement (1) has a device for cooling a surface to be irradiated (7) and / or the

Fluorescent film (8) is assigned.

11. Irradiation arrangement according to one of the preceding claims, characterized in that the device is designed as air or water cooling.

12. Irradiation arrangement according to one of the preceding claims, characterized in that the arrangement is assigned a device for generating a mechanical vibration which is placed on the skin to be treated.

13. Irradiation arrangement according to claim 12, characterized in that the vibration generation takes place at a time offset from the delivery of the pulses.

14. Irradiation arrangement according to claim 12 or 13, characterized in that the device is designed as an electrodynamic or photoelastic transducer.

15. Methods for the treatment of acne, acne scars and cosmetic skin treatment, in particular for the treatment of skin wrinkles, epidermal and dermal atrophy, skin roughness,

Pigmentation disorders, telangiectasia, skin laxity and enlarged pores, by means of a pulsable, broadband optical radiation source (2), which generates pulses with pulse energies between 0.05-10 J/cm ² in a wavelength interval of 320 to at least 540 nm, whereby the irradiance of the irradiation peaks of the optical pulses between 0.5 W/cm ² and 100 kW/cm ² , comprising the following process steps: a) irradiating the acne with effective pulse lengths between 1 μs - 500 ms at pulse frequencies between 0.01 - 100 Hz for at least 1-60 minutes long and b) at least one repetition of process step a) after at least 24 hours.

16. The method according to claim 15, characterized in that the wavelength of the emitted radiation is greater than 400 nm.

17. The method according to claim 15 or 16, characterized in that before and / or during the irradiation the oxygen concentration in the area of the acne is increased by topical and / or inspiratory oxygen supply.