Red Light Therapy and Vulvar Lichen Sclerosus
If you’ve never heard of vulvar lichen sclerosus (VLS), consider yourself fortunate.
And if you have heard of it, or you're living with it, you know it’s so much more than a ‘skin condition.’
VLS is a chronic, inflammatory disease that affects the vulva and sometimes even the skin around the anus. It’s often itchy, painful, and, honestly, life-altering. It can also result in fusion or adhesions that can occur when areas of the vulva, such as the labia minora (inner lips), stick to the labia majora (outer lips) and it can impact the clitoral hood.
It can cause burning, pain with intimacy, skin changes, and deep emotional distress. If you have been diagnosed with this condition I’m sorry you’re feeling so miserable - for too long, treatment options have been limited to steroid creams and crossing your fingers. VLS tends to show up most often early in life (before puberty) and later in life (after menopause). It’s less common during the reproductive years (teenagers through about mid-40s) so it seems likely there’s a hormonal aspect to it.
But here’s the good news - and you know I love bringing you good news.
Photobiomodulation (PBM) — also known as low-level laser therapy (LLLT) or red light therapy is showing serious promise as a natural, non-invasive way to help manage the symptoms of vulvar lichen sclerosus. The research is exciting but as usual we need a LOT more focus on women's health.
Image credit - Volodymyr Bushmelov
How Does It Work?
In this case PBM uses red and near-infrared light to stimulate cellular within the tissues. We start at the tiniest common denominator - your cells, and when we give them more energy for healing and reducing inflammation the tissues of the vulva can heal. It's like giving your cells a little TLC to help them reduce inflammation, soothe pain, and start the repair process. This is NOT a CO2 laser - there is no burning, no cutting, no downtime - just gentle light on your bits for a few minutes a week for several weeks.
And it’s not just theory. A new study from Denmark followed 94 women who had been struggling with VLS even after using steroid creams. They had ten sessions of low-level laser therapy (808 nm wavelength, for my fellow science nerds and here’s what they found).
Pain dropped dramatically.
Sleep improved.
Energy increased.
Emotional wellbeing improved.
And the best part - no serious side effects.
Is It a Cure?
I wish I could say yes, but while PBM does NOT cure VLS or stop it permanently, it is a serious contender for symptom relief. Women felt better, slept better, lived better. One important thing to note: because vulvar lichen sclerosus can come and go over time, researchers suggest ongoing maintenance treatments might help extend those benefits.
Why It Matters
VLS can steal so much, confidence, comfort, sleep and intimacy. Having more tools like red light therapy in our healing toolkit means women aren’t stuck choosing between suffering or relying 100% on steroids (especially if steroids haven’t helped).
And you deserve options. You deserve to feel good in your body.
Period.
Red light therapy reduces inflammation and oxidative stress at the source by increasing mitochondrial functioning within the epithelial cells. Photobiomodulation increases anti-inflammatory cytokines and reduces pain through TRPV channels.
Don’t have access to low level laser therapy in your community? If you’re using one of my recommended products I’ll write a personalised protocol for you to replicate as much of the new research protocols as I can.
Resources:
2024 Study - Journal of Obstetrics and Gynecology
https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/01443615.2024.2349965#abstract
