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Types of Light Therapy · Ionized gas, emerging

Cold plasma: emerging, and not quite light.

Cold plasma is an ionized gas, not light in the usual sense. It sits in our light therapy guide with that caveat. The evidence we found is thin, and we say so.

A clear glass sphere containing a faint glowing pink and violet misty haze on cream silk (AI-generated illustration)

In short

  • A 2026 systematic review describes cold plasma as a novel antimicrobial platform, and reports faster healing and lower microbial load in trials on chronic wounds.1
  • It notes that standardization and dosing are unsolved.1

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What we found

The 2026 systematic review covers mechanisms, efficacy and clinical translation. It reports chronic wound trials with faster healing and lower microbial load, and notes unsolved standardization and dosing.1

What we could not confirm

The gaps, stated plainly.

  • Any cosmetic or anti-aging benefit. The source we read concerns wounds and microbes.
  • How cold plasma compares with other treatments, and what dose is right.

Questions

Common questions.

What is cold plasma used for?

A 2026 systematic review describes it as an antimicrobial platform and reports faster healing and lower microbial load in trials on chronic wounds.1

Is cold plasma a type of light therapy?

Not in the usual sense. It is an ionized gas. We include it in our light therapy guide with that caveat.1

Keep reading

Back to the full guide: Types of Light Therapy.

More in this guide

Related research

Sources

Where every claim comes from.

Numbers in brackets link to these entries. Journal entries were read as their PubMed record, and study details come from PubMed, the US National Library of Medicine. See every source on the Research Desk, organised by page.

  1. [1] Infection Prevention in Practice (Namvar Vansofla and colleagues). Cold plasma technology as a novel antimicrobial platform: mechanisms, efficacy, and clinical translation: a systematic literature review.

This page is general information drawn from published reviews and studies. It is not medical advice and makes no light therapy claim about any Vanu Health product. The image is an AI-generated illustration, not a study image. Last updated October 30, 2026.