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Ultraviolet Light Therapy for Hepatitis C

Hepatitis C is a viral infection of the liver for which there is no cure. Patients with hepatitis C are often asymptomatic for years, according to MedlinePlus. However, the infection can do serious damage to the liver and leads to cirrhosis in at least 20 percent of all cases, according to the National Digestive Diseases Information Clearinghouse. Tests have shown that ultraviolet blood irradiation (UBI) can help to reduce the severity of Hepatitis C infections.

  1. A Brief History

    • According to an article by Robert J. Rowen, M.D., in a 1996 issue of the International Journal of Biosocial Medical Research, UBI was first used on humans in the early 1930s. Rowen reports that the effectiveness of UBI in treating infections was studied extensively in the 1940s by George Miley, a clinical professor at Philadelphia's Hahnemann Hospital and College of Medicine. Miley found that UBI was extremely successful in treating such infections as peritonitis, pyelitis, sinusitis, puerperal sepsis and wound infections in all but the most advanced cases. Later studies by Miley and a colleague showed UBI helped a number of patients with polio, a viral infection, to recover.

    Testing on Hep C Patients

    • More recent testing on the effectiveness of UBI in treating Hepatitis C is a bit more germane to your concerns as a hepatitis C patient and should help you in deciding whether this type of treatment is for you. According to the Hepatitis Central website, Energex Systems, a developer of advanced UBI technology, studied the effects of UBI therapy on viral loads (indicative of the infection's severity) in 13 patients with the infection. In three test subjects, viral load was reduced 90 percent or more, while another eight subjects showed a drop in viral load of at least 50 percent. There was no change in two test subjects.

    The Procedure

    • If you or a loved one has been diagnosed with hepatitis C and decide to undergo UBI therapy, you'll be happy to learn that the procedure itself is fairly simple and straightforward. You will have a relatively small amount of blood (3 to 4 percent of your total blood volume) withdrawn. While you wait, the blood is exposed to precise amounts of ultraviolet (UV) light for 20 to 30 minutes, after which the treated blood is returned to your body through the portal from which it was drawn. You'll undergo this simple procedure five times over the course of 16 days.

    Impact of UV Therapy

    • The effect of UV therapy on your Hepatitis C infection is best described by Energex Systems, which developed the Hemo-Modulator machine used in UBI procedures. Energex theorizes that blood exposed to UV radiation outside the body acts as an immune system stimulant once it has been returned to your body. This boost to your immune system helps it to more effectively combat the Hepatitis C virus.

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