Antimicrobial Efficacy of Curcumin Formulations by Photodynamic Therapy

URTI (upper respiratory tract infections) are caused by acute, chronic or recurrent infections including pharyngitis and tonsillitis. The etiologic agents involved are bacteria, virus, and fungi. The standard treatment for bacterial infections is the use of antibiotics. The antibiotic resistance, side effects of drugs and URTI complications indicate the importance of new therapies. PDT (photodynamic therapy) is a treatment option with a fast onset of action, low side effects, and easy administration of PS (photosensitizer) based on this study. The main aim of this study was to develop a new modality for the treatment of infectious pharyngotonsillitis by photodynamic therapy. In addition, this study aims to evaluate components of the therapy as the PS, curcumin, in two formulations and irradiation conditions in the effectiveness of treatment. The procedure consists of two steps: oral administration of CFs (curcumin formulations) containing a PS and illumination (450 nm and 0-60 J/cm2). Bacterial isolates were obtained from patients in a routine clinical pratice. The new methodology has been developed from the principle of PI (photodynamic inactivation). The strain identification number of colony forming units determined the efficacy of PI using each component, lighting and PS. The use of curcumin formulations in PI presented microbial reduction of 5 log.