The perfect photosensitizing agent would be a single compound with high tumor selectivity and increased absorption of the red region of light in the treatment area for deeper tissue penetration.
We included studies of PDT used for the primary treatment of early-stage oral SCC regardless of the specific photosensitizing agent, dose, or duration of treatment.
By using a light source to activate the photosensitizing agent, the targeted approach does not disrupt the surrounding areas.
In oral antimicrobial photodynamic therapy, toluidine blue and methylene blue photosensitizing agents are the most commonly used [11, 12], since they have a high degree of selectivity for damage for gram-positive and gram-negative bacterias [46-48].
The difficulty for antimicrobial agents, photosensitizing agents, and light to penetrate the deeper layers of biofilm limits their effectiveness [25, 30].
With this method, a photosensitizing agent is activated by light at a specific wavelength that corresponds to maximum absorbance by the substance, resulting in the production of free radicals, singlet oxygen, and other reactive oxygen species, which have a toxic effect on bacterial cells, leading to cell death without causing harm to the host [6, 7, 11-13].
Articles addressing the effect of antimicrobial PDT with the use of a photosensitizing agent on known cariogenic biofilm formed mainly by streptococci of the mutans group and/or lactobacilli were included, with no restrictions placed on the method employed or year of publication.
First degrease the skin, then apply the
photosensitizing agent under plastic wrap occlusion for 1-3 hours with low-level blue light, and apply 5%-7% topical lidocaine 30 minutes before putting on the red PDT light for 10-30 minutes.
