1. A Marked Decrease in Serum Cortisol and Histamine Levels Using the Lumen Therapeutic Protocols for Acute Low Back Pain By Stan Gross, D.C., F.A.S.A.

2. The Lumen Photon Therapeutic Light System The system utilizes high intensity LED infrared spectral light coupled with ultraviolet light administered with a carrier frequency. The spectrum of applied light is driven to the subdermal receptors using the carrier frequency to facilitate penetration, duration and amplitude. The clinical objective is to reduce or otherwise control pain and inflammation. Initial clinical trials suggested a connection between the application of the light therapy and the stimulation of opiate and anti- noceceptive receptors.

3. Comparative Analysis How does the light therapy unit perform when applied to a limited population of subjects suffering from acute low back pain? How does that performance compare to an accepted form of conservative treatment for low back pain? How does the light therapy unit compare to the placebo group?

4. Further Analysis… Using an accepted analog scale, how does the light therapy unit compare? Using serum cortisol and histamine levels at both pre-treatment and post-treatment intervals, how does the light therapy compare? Using a comparative deviation of all three groups, how does the light therapy compare in the final review?

5. The Study 223 subjects were selected on the following basis: All subjects suffered from acute lumbar pain and restriction which was not connected to underlying pathologies (arthritis, cancer, post-surgical adhesions). None of the subjects were affiliated with Lumen Photon Light Therapy, Inc. None of the subjects were employed by a healthcare institution. The injuries had to present a sclerotogenous pain pattern without radiculopathy or myelopathy.

6. The Study, continued… 72 subjects were given conservative chiropractic treatment with no other forms of therapy. 74 subjects had the Lumen Photon Light Therapy applied using the NICO settings. 77 subjects had the Lumen Light Therapy applied but the unit was not turned on.

7. The Study, continued… Pre-treatment and post-treatment pain surveys were completed by all of the subjects using the McGill Pain Institute protocols. Pre-treatment and post-treatment levels of serum cortisol and histamine were collected from all of the subjects via saliva ELISA test kits following the manufacturers protocols.

8. The Results: Group One: (chiropractic) 72% reduction in symptoms using and analog or subjective analysis. A 41.6% +/- 3% reduction in serum cortisol was measured. A 38.8% +/- 4% reduction in serum histamine was measured.

9. The Results, continued… Group Two: (The Lumen Photon Light Therapy) Using the McGill protocols, 93.7% of the subjects realized a reduction in symptoms. A 36.7% +/- 3% reduction in serum cortisol levels was measured. A 27.8% +/- 4% reduction of serum histamine levels was measured.

10. The Results, continued… Group Three: (The placebo) 45% of the subjects reported a reduction in symptoms. A 7.3% +/- 3% reduction in serum cortisol was measured. An 8.6% +/- 4% reduction in serum histamine was measured.

11. Conjecture: While pain is often a subjective measurement, the physiological responses using the specific markers clearly indicated a reduction of pain and inflammation. Reduction of cortisol and histamine was evident in all three groups but most prominently in the first two groups. While a cause and effect relationship has been established it has not been clearly defined. The specific receptors responsible for the results of this study need to be identified in order to predict clinical outcomes on a wider array of pain syndromes. Objective analysis strongly suggests that cortisol and histamine levels are markedly reduced in both Group One and Group Two but the Lumen group reported a much greater reduction of subjective findings.

12. Conclusions and Discussion: While the total sampling for this particular study was small, the results remain substantial and merit further investigation using a larger population and incorporating other specific physiological markers for pain and inflammation such as Interleukin IV. A comparative analysis involving common analgesics would also provide the possibility of expanded clinical trials and application in main stream medicine for pain management. Another interesting correlation would involve the extensive body of research in Traditional Chinese Medicine and the use of the Associated Bladder Meridian for pain control and how those mechanisms correlate to the Lumen Photon Therapeutic Light System.

13. Post-Script… Thank you for your attention and for the opportunity to present my work! Stan Gross, D.C., F.A.S.A. 305A O’Fallon Plaza O’Fallon, Missouri 63366