Laser Therapy of Irradiated Traumatized Skeletal Muscles and State of Immune System in Animals

Problems statement: This study was designed to examine the effect of laser therapy on regeneration of traumatized skeletal muscles and on dynamics of immune responses in thymus and bone marrow under ionizing radiation. Approach: After local X-ray radiation of both rat gastrocnemius muscles at a dose 20 Gy or after total γ-irradiation of animals at a semiletal dose 6 Gy, the muscles were damaged considerably as contractile organ (full cut across muscle). Then laser therapy was carried out with a helium-neon laser (632.8 nm) or infrared pulsed laser (890 nm), 10 treatments by 3 min during the first 15 or 30 days after trauma.The investigations were performed using histological, biochemical, cytological, cytogenetic and morphometric methods. Results: The received data showed that under ionizing radiation, He-Ne and IR laser irradiation stimulated the regeneration of skeletal muscles, improved the healing of skin-muscle wound and stimulated the prosesses of postradiation recovery in cells of the thymus and bone marrow. The regenerative activity of radiated traumatized muscles and the level of reduction of cytogenetic damages in bone marrow and the thymus varied depending on the period for which regenerative muscles were exposured to laser light, as well as the optical characteristics of lasers and the degree of radiation damages. The early appearance of reactive changes in structure of the thymus and the display them during 60 days point to increasing function of organ. Conclusion: Under local and total ionizing radiation and laser therapy of solely damaged skeletal muscles, positive dynamics of regeneration processes and improvement of cytological and cytogenetic indexes for main immune organs (the thymus and bone marrow) were observed. Herewith, the functional loading on thymus increased. We suggest that the findings should be considered in clinical practice.