Advertisement
Advertisement
Study decoded · health · Emerging
Pilot Safety Trial Tests Red Light Brain Device In Concussed Athletes
Concussion Pilot Study50 AthletesNo Sham GroupMild Side EffectsFrontiers Neurology
A pilot trial published September 22, 2026 in Frontiers in Neurology tested a brain photobiomodulation device, red light therapy combined with a magnetic field, in 50 athletes with acute concussion, finding mild side effects in 38.5% to 41.7% of participants and no difference in tolerability between two treatment settings.
Fifty adult sportspeople with a concussion from a sports impact within the prior 72 hours were randomized 1:1 at one site to two pulse frequencies of a combined photobiomodulation-and-magnetic-field device: 5 Hz in 26 people or 10 Hz in 24 people, in a single-blind pilot study. Sessions lasted 20 minutes on day 0 and day 7, with follow-up through day 52. Forty-nine of 50 people, 98%, completed the study. At least one adverse device effect occurred in 38.5% of the 5 Hz group (10 of 26) and 41.7% of the 10 Hz group (10 of 24); all effects were mild and non-serious, most often drowsiness or discomfort at the device site, and all resolved. No difference was detected between the groups on this safety measure or on secondary tests of eye-tracking, balance, executive function or symptom scores.
Adverse Device Effects: 38.5% vs 41.7%
Photobiomodulation therapy applies specific wavelengths of red or near-infrared light to tissue. In general, this type of light is thought to support mitochondria, the energy-producing structures inside cells, which may help injured tissue recover energy faster. This trial did not test that mechanism directly; it was designed only to check whether the device itself was safe to use, and without a placebo device group, the secondary changes recorded during follow-up cannot be credited to the treatment.
The trial had no sham-device comparison group, so it cannot show whether the device changed concussion symptoms or recovery time, only whether it was tolerated. It was a single-site pilot of 50 people, secondary analyses were not adjusted for multiple comparisons, and funding and conflicts of interest were not reported.
Data Panel
- Who
- 50 adult sportspeople with acute sport-related concussion, treated within 72 hours of injury, single site
- Design
- Randomized 1:1, single-blind pilot trial comparing two pulse frequencies of a photobiomodulation-plus-magnetic-field device; no placebo device group
- Dose
- 20-minute sessions on day 0 and day 7; 5 Hz frequency (n=26) versus 10 Hz frequency (n=24); followed through day 52
- Primary result
- At least one adverse device effect occurred in 38.5% (10 of 26) in the 5 Hz group and 41.7% (10 of 24) in the 10 Hz group; no difference detected between groups; all effects mild, non-serious and resolved
- Secondary
- No difference detected between the two frequency groups on secondary measures of eye-tracking, balance, executive function or symptom scores; changes over follow-up were observed but not attributable to treatment without a placebo comparison group
- Funding / conflicts
- Not reported
Dr. Axe's Take
This trial answers one question: was the device tolerated. It was, in both the 5 Hz and 10 Hz groups, with mild issues like drowsiness in roughly 4 in 10 people that resolved on their own. The researchers are direct that without a placebo device group, none of the eye-movement, balance or symptom changes they recorded can be credited to the treatment. I want to see a sham-controlled follow-up trial before pointing a concussed athlete toward this device. Until then, the plan after a head injury stays the same: immediate evaluation, real rest from screens and exertion, a graded return to activity guided by a physician, and anti-inflammatory foods to support the brain's own recovery.
— Dr. AxeDr. Axe Quiz