WO2000028575A1

WO2000028575A1 - Radiation device for therapeutic and cosmetic purposes

Info

Publication number: WO2000028575A1
Application number: PCT/DE1999/002364
Authority: WO
Inventors: Rolf Stirner
Original assignee: Spectrometrix Optoelectronic Systems Gmbh
Priority date: 1998-11-06
Filing date: 1999-07-29
Publication date: 2000-05-18
Also published as: EP1135791A1; DE19852524A1; AU6460299A

Abstract

The invention relates to a radiation device for therapeutic and cosmetic purposes, for treating primarily T-cell- transmitted skin diseases, especially atopic dermatitis (neurodermititis), cutaneous T-cell lymphomas, lichen ruber, alopecia areata, systematic lupus erythematodes and psoriasis and for cosmetic tanning. The device comprises at least one optical radiation source that produces a radiation intensity of at least 2 mW/cm2 in the wavelength range of 400-440 nm and a radiation intensity of less than 21 % of the radiation intensity in the wavelength range of 400-440 nm in the wavelength range 300-400 nm on a surface to be irradiated.

Description

Irradiation facility for therapeutic and cosmetic purposes

The invention relates to an irradiation device for therapeutic and cosmetic purposes.

Primarily T-cell-mediated skin diseases such as atopic dermatitis (neurodermatitis), cutane T-cell lymphoma, alopecia areata, Lieben ruber and psoriasis are based on a skin infiltrate of activated T-lymphocytes of the own body. Neurodermatitis in particular is increasingly affecting newborns and children. Due to the inflamed areas of the skin and the associated itching, this disease is a heavy burden both physiologically and psychologically.

The previously known therapies for the treatment of neurodermatitis can essentially be divided into two classes, namely chemotherapy and UVA1 or UVB light therapy.

In chemotherapy, the current gold standard in the treatment of atopic dermatitis is glucocorticoid therapy. With this therapy there are sometimes serious side effects after both systemic and topical application. Alternative methods for the treatment of neurodermatitis include therapy with strongly immunomodulating pharmaceuticals, such as FK 506 or Cyclosporin A, about which long-term consequences are not yet known.

UVA 1 light therapy has proven to be effective for the treatment of acute episodes of neurodermatitis, urticaria pigmentosa and localized scleroderma. Two types of devices are currently available for UVA 1 therapy according to Meffert and UVA 1 therapy according to Krutmann. UVA 1 therapy according to Meffert works in a fire band between 340 and 500 nm, UVA therapy according to Krutmann at 340 - 400 nm. A very good overview of the state of the art in UVA 1 therapy is provided by "Position on quality assurance in UVA 1 phototherapy, version of the subgroup photo (chemo) therapy and diagnostics of the subcommittee on physical procedures in dermatology, May 1998" , as well as the "Guidelines for Quality Assurance in Photo (Chemo) Therapy and Diagnostics", which can be found in "Krutmann, S., Hönigsmann, H .: Manual of Dermatological Phototherapy and Diagnostics, Springer-Verlag, Heidelberg, pp. 392 - 395 "is published. Premature skin aging and carcinogenicity are listed as long-term risks. Because of this situation, it is explicitly stated that the use of medium and high doses of UVA1 in the children's string is not recommended. However, the largest affected group of neurodermatitis is excluded.

It is also known that acne, in contrast to atopic dermatitis due to bacterial growth in clogged follicles of sebum-rich skin areas with cornification disorders, can treat skin disease with blue light in the range of 400-440 nm without substantial UVA components, the success remaining limited. For this purpose, reference is made to the technical article "V. Sigurdsson et al., Phototherapy of Acne Vulgaris with visble Light, Dermatology 1997; 194; Vol.3, 256-260" with further references. This form of therapy was initiated so that acne follicles fluoresce red as part of the dermatological examination with a so-called "woodlamp". The storage of large amounts of porphyrins in the propion bacterium acne has been demonstrated as the source of the fluorescence (Mc Ginley et al., Facial follicuiar porphyrin fluorescence. Correlation with age and density of propionibactehum acnes, Br. J. Dermatol Vol. 102., Vol. 3, 437-441, 1980). Since porphyrins have their main absorption (Soret band) around 420 nm, it was for Meffert et al. obvious to treat acne follicles containing bacteria with blue light.

The long-wave absorption band of the porphyrins is 630 nm with a penetration depth of 4 mm, which is the most favorable and also used for photodynamic follicle treatment. The invention is therefore based on the technical problem of creating an irradiation device for the treatment of primarily T-cell-mediated skin diseases which has fewer side effects and is also particularly suitable for the treatment of children.

The solution to the technical problem results from the features of claim 1. The surprising effectiveness of the radiation in the range of 400-440 nm on the T cells makes it possible to create an irradiation device for the treatment of primarily T cell-mediated skin diseases which, on the one hand, is hardly treatable

Skin diseases such as Lying ruber can be treated and, on the other hand, treatment of children is also possible due to the carcinogenicity to UVA, which is ten orders of magnitude lower. The effectiveness has already been impressively confirmed in clinical trials. The test subjects were treated with radiation doses between 10 and 200 joules, a preferred radiation dose being 50 J in the wavelength range from 400-440 nm. Another surprising effect is therefore that a therapeutic effect already occurs at 8% compared to the previously prescribed radiation doses. As a result, lower irradiance levels and shorter treatment times can be achieved. It has also been found that, in contrast to the 15 day sessions that have been customary up to now, 3-5 days of treatment are sufficient and, according to the patients, a noticeable improvement has already occurred after the first treatment. The area of the patient to be irradiated is between 0.2-3 m away from the irradiation device.

Since it cannot be ruled out that patient-specific threshold values for the irradiance levels exist for the therapeutic mode of action of blue light, presumably due to the different content of melanin and / or antioxidants in the skin, an irradiance level of greater than 20 mW / cm ² is preferably used for the wavelength range between 400 -440 nm selected. In general, however, it is tried to shorten the treatment times, with the highest possible irradiance in the Wavelength range of 400-440 nm to work. Tests with irradiance levels greater than 60 mW / cm ² and greater than 100 mW / cm ² have already been carried out. Conversely, attempts are made to suppress the irradiance levels of the other wavelengths as far as possible. Gallium plasma lamps are currently used, which usually have an intensity ratio of 400-440 nm: UVA: UVB of 100: 20: 0.5.

In the gallium plasma emitters used, the irradiance in the wavelength range of 300-400 nm is essentially caused by the spectral lines at 313 nm and 364 nm, the irradiance in

Range of 313 nm is less than 0.5% in relation to the irradiance in the wavelength range 400-440 nm.

The ratio of the intensities can be shifted by active filter measures, so that one is currently in operation

Irradiation device in the wavelength range from 400-440 nm has an irradiance of 58 mW / cm ² , in the UVA range of 3 mW / cm ² and in the UVB range of 140 μW / cm ² , which has an intensity ratio of 100: 5.2: Corresponds to 0.25.

With an administered radiation dose of 50 J in the wavelength range of 400-440 nm, the radiation dose fluctuated in the UVB range between 25-150 mJ. Despite these fluctuation ranges, the UVB doses thus administered are considerably lower than the radiation doses of classic UVB therapies, which start with starting doses of 200 mJ and change over the course of several weeks

Increase treatment to 800 mJ. The same applies to the UVA range around 364 nm to a much greater extent. However, it cannot be ruled out that small portions of the UVB range around 313 nm have a synergetic effect on therapy in the wavelength range of 400-440 nm. This is currently the subject of further clinical trials in which the effect and, if appropriate, threshold values for the irradiance and / or radiation dose for the wavelength 313 nm are to be determined. The same applies analogously to the UVA components, for which a synergetic effect however, is more likely to be excluded.

In addition, the subjects were surprisingly given a lasting tan, so that the radiation device can also be used for cosmetic purposes and can also replace the known UV devices there with the problems relating to the risk of skin cancer. Further advantageous embodiments of the invention result from the subclaims.

In a preferred embodiment, the optical radiation source of the radiation device is at least one

Mercury low-pressure discharge lamp with preferably Sr ₂ P ₂ 0 ₇ : Eu - or (SrMg) ₂ P ₂ 0 ₇ : Eu -phosphorus formed as a phosphor. With these, irradiance levels greater than 50 mW / cm ² can already be achieved at a distance of 50 cm. By appropriately focusing the optical

Radiation sources emitted radiation on the radiation surface, the effective irradiance can be increased even more, which in principle also applies to the subsequent optical radiation sources.

In a further preferred embodiment, the optical radiation source is designed as a high-pressure mercury discharge lamp with metal halide additives gallium indium iodide and / or gallium iodide, the weight ratio between the mercury and the metal halide additives being 10-100. To increase efficiency, the quartz bulb is partially mirrored with zirconium oxide in the area of the electrodes.

In order to suppress the radiation components emitted in the UVB range due to the mercury, the radiation device is assigned a UVB filter, which in the simplest case consists of a glass pane. The UVB filter is preferably designed as a cladding tube which is arranged around the optical radiation source and the area between the cladding tube and the quartz bulb is evacuated to a gas pressure of 10-500 torr. UV-opaque transparent plastics are preferably used to suppress the UVA components Application, which are preferably designed as films and filter out not only the UVA but also the UVB range. Appropriate doping of the plastics can largely change their filtering capacity, so that different intensity distributions can be set. This is of particular interest if it should turn out that certain UVB and / or UVA components or intensities enhance a therapeutic effect.

In a further preferred embodiment, the optical radiation source is designed as an electrodeless high-pressure mercury discharge lamp, as a result of which the metal halides gallium chloride and / or bromide which are preferred on account of their higher vapor pressure are then used primarily as doping. The electromagnetic energy for the discharge is then coupled into a resonator formed by a metallic shield by means of a magnetron with an associated antenna.

Furthermore, an IR filter is preferably provided in order to suppress the undesired heat radiation. To ensure good heat dissipation from the IR filter at the same time, a cooling unit with liquid cooling is assigned to the optical radiation sources, the liquid being designed as an IR filter. The cooling unit preferably consists of two radiation cooler sockets with integrated inlets and outlets between which a transparent cladding tube is arranged. The advantage of this arrangement is that the radiation cooler detachments are detachably connected to the optical radiation source, which means that they can be reused in the case of defective optical sources

Radiation sources allowed. Water is particularly suitable as the coolant and silicone oil for the electrodeless high-pressure lamp. The silicone oil has a number of other advantages. In addition to a large, stable temperature range, cooling down to 4 ° C is possible. Silicone oil has a low absorption of microwave energy and at the same time acts as an IR filter.

The invention is based on a preferred Embodiment explained in more detail. The figures show:

1 shows a cross section through a high-pressure mercury discharge lamp,

2 shows a cross section through a high-pressure mercury discharge lamp with integrated water cooling, FIG. 3 vapor pressure curves of gallium and gallium halides,

4 shows a cross section through an electrodeless

High-pressure discharge lamp with cooling unit and a magnetron, Fig.5 shows a cross section through an electrodeless

High-pressure discharge lamp with cooling unit and two magnetrons, FIG. 6 a spectrum of a gallium plasma radiator,

7 shows a spectrum of a high-pressure discharge lamp with a

Weight ratio between mercury and gallium iodide of 44, Fig. 8 a spectrum of a high-pressure discharge lamp with a

Weight ratio between mercury and gallium iodide from 22, Fig. 9 a spectrum of a high-pressure discharge lamp with a

Weight ratio of mercury and gallium iodide of 8.8, Fig.10 is a spectrum of a known gallium-indium effect lamp, Fig.11 is a schematic cross-sectional view of a

Whole-body irradiation device and FIG. 12 shows a schematic cross section through an irradiation arrangement with a high-power plasma emitter.

The optical radiation source of the radiation device for the treatment of primarily T-cell-mediated skin diseases can be designed as a low-pressure as well as a high-pressure discharge lamp. However, as explained in more detail later, a high-pressure mercury discharge lamp 1 has some advantages in the spectrum over the known low-pressure discharge lamps for the spectral region of interest.

The high-pressure mercury discharge lamp 1 comprises a quartz bulb 2, in which two electrodes 3 are arranged. Electrical connecting lines 4 for the voltage supply are connected to the electrodes 3, which lead to a screw socket 5. Around the quartz bulb 2 is a cladding tube 6 arranged, which is closed at one end and is hermetically sealed to the screw socket 5 at its other end. The space between cladding tube 6 and quartz bulb 2 is evacuated to a gas pressure of 10-500 torr. The quartz bulb 2 contains mercury, argon and a metal halide additive such as gallium iodide and / or gallium indium iodide, which preferably emits in the wavelength range from 400-440 nm. The irradiance and the spectra will be discussed in more detail later. The weight ratio of mercury to the metal halide additives is 10-100. In the power range of 400 W there is preferably a mixing ratio of 1-5 mg

Metal halide additive to 44 mg mercury. The quartz bulb 2 is also partially mirrored in the area 8 of the electrodes 3 by means of zirconium oxide in order to increase the temperature in the area of the quartz bulb 2 near the electrodes. The cladding tube 6 essentially has two functions. On the one hand, it serves as a UVB filter to reduce this unwanted spectral component as much as possible. On the other hand, the cladding tube 6 is used for thermal insulation, since the surface of the quartz bulb 2 becomes very hot during operation. Another advantage of the cladding tube 6 is the protection of the actual high-pressure discharge lamp against external temperature changes.

2 shows a cross section through the high-pressure mercury discharge lamp 1 according to FIG. 1 with an integrated coolant unit. The coolant unit comprises a first and a second radiation cooler detection 9, 10 and a transparent cladding tube 11. In the two

Radiation cooler sockets 9, 10 each have an inlet or outlet 12, 13 to which a hose can then be connected. The first radiation cooler 9 is simply pushed onto the screw 5. The transparent cladding tube 11 is then inserted into the radiation cooler holder 9 and is closed on the opposite side by the second radiation cooler holder 10 on the screw holder 5. A hermetically sealed circuit for the coolant 17 is formed between the inlet 12 and the outlet 13 by means of O-shaped sealing rings 14, 15, 16. The coolant 17th can be water in the simplest case. In this case, the coolant 17 mainly serves to dissipate the heat generated on the evacuated cladding tube 6 in order to keep it at a temperature of 40-60 ° C.

Since the penetration depth of the blue light is limited, nevertheless at

Diseases of the deeper skin layers or skin appendages, such as the hair roots, or in the case of inflammation-related thickening of the skin, such as in psoriasis and scleroderma, the radiation must penetrate very deeply, an irradiation device is advantageous in which the circulating coolant 17 is significantly cooler than the skin temperature . Then the cooled cladding tube 11 can be placed directly on the affected skin, in which case irradiations of the order of magnitude of approximately 1-2 W / cm ² can be applied with an electrical connected load of 1000 W, since higher irradiations lead to a shorter treatment time . As a result of the high tissue absorption of the blue light, there is very strong heat development in the upper tissue layers, which would otherwise lead to burns without this cooling to, for example, 4 ° C. This cooling allows the depth effect limited by a threshold dose to be extended to several millimeters and thus into the follicle area. The preferred coolant 17 for electrode lamps is water. At the same time, the coolant 17 serves as an IR absorber.

In addition, the inside of the cladding tube 6 can be coated with the phosphors known from the low-pressure discharge lamps, in order to transform additional portions of the UVC radiation emitted by the mercury into the interesting wavelength range of 400-440 nm. Since the phosphor itself has only a low absorption in the 400-440 nm range, an effective increase in the emission in this wavelength range is thus possible. Cooling of the phosphor is a prerequisite for the use of blue phosphors in the evacuated cladding tube, which may be filled with noble gas. Under normal operating conditions without cooling, the cladding tube reaches up to 600 ° C. However, the efficiency of the blue phosphors drops sharply at temperatures above 100 ° C that their use only makes sense when using thermostatting to below 100 ° C, as can be achieved by the coolant unit described above. The efficiency of the optical radiation source can be increased further by using phosphors in connection with other doping in the quartz burner, which preferably emit in the UV range. Halide compounds of the metals selenium, antimony, zinc and cadmium are suitable for this.

3 shows the vapor pressure curves in torr versus the absolute temperature for the pure metal gallium and its halide salts gallium iodide, gallium chloride and gallium bromide. At the permissible wall temperatures without liquid cooling, the pure gallium is inferior to the halides by several orders of magnitude, so that efficient discharge with gallium can only be achieved at extremely high wall temperatures, which in turn requires more cooling with silicone oil, for example. Of the gallium halides shown, gallium iodide has the lowest vapor pressure. Gallium bromide is an order of magnitude better from this point of view. However, these bromides or chlorides are so aggressive that they would quickly destroy the electrodes 3 in the exemplary embodiments according to FIGS. 1 and 2.

Therefore, when using gallium bromides or chlorides, an irradiation device without electrodes 3 as shown in FIG. 4 is preferred. The irradiation device 1 comprises a quartz bulb 2 in which the gallium or gallium halides are distributed. The cooling unit already described is arranged around the quartz piston 2. A magnetron 18 with an associated antenna 19 is arranged on at least one end face of a radiation cooler detection 9. Furthermore, a metallic shield 20 is arranged around the cooling unit, which forms a resonator for the electromagnetic waves emitted by the antenna 19. The

The use of water as a coolant 17 is ruled out in this arrangement, since water would absorb the electromagnetic waves of the magnetron 18 too strongly, so that here preferably silicone oil as a coolant is used.

Electrode-free lamps have a useful life of 10,000 - 20,000 hours and a better efficiency than conventional light sources with electrodes 3. However, the emission of these lamps is influenced by temperature differences within the lamp. If parts of the quartz bulb 2 (plasma ampoule) are not heated uniformly, dark bands result which are caused by self-absorption of the plasma. The temperature differences within the plasma source are often the result of an uneven field distribution of the microwave energy in the resonator. This leads to an uneven discharge and a deterioration in the lamp output. In a preferred embodiment, control over the electromagnetic field distribution is achieved by a resonance cylinder which supports the E ₀₁ mode. In this case the field distribution is such that the electric field in the resonator axis has its highest value and the electric field vector points in the radial direction. The field strength drops to the conductive walls of the resonator to disappear on the conductive surface of the cylindrical shield 20. The required power depends on the achievable plasma density. The plasma is concentrated in the middle of the discharge vessel. In the case of coaxial alignment, the entire cylinder jacket of the quartz piston 2 is in the region of the same field strength, so that irregularities in this regard are excluded. The resonant waveguide has a diameter of 9.37 cm in the E ₀₁ mode and the preferred excitation frequency of 2450 MHz. Under these conditions, any length is permissible for the resonator without the E ₀₁ resonance condition being changed, as a result of which the resonator can be easily adapted to different powers by changing the length.

Another advantage of the E ₀₁ mode is that, due to the symmetry, electromagnetic energy can be coupled in from two sides, as shown in FIG. 5, which is particularly the case with longer lengths of the quartz piston 2 important is. Because of the standing wave, only the diameter of the waveguide must be strictly observed. The distance between the two magnetrons 18 is comparatively uncritical. It is only necessary to ensure that the energy absorption in the plasma is sufficiently high that no undamped waves hit the other magnetron 18, since this could lead to destruction.

As already stated, water is eliminated as a coolant. Silicone oils such as dimethyl polysiloxane are therefore preferably used which have only a low microwave absorption of less than 0.2 W / cm per kilowatt output. Silicon oil is transparent in the visible range and absorbs a significant IR component in the wavelength range greater than 1 μm. This means that separate IR filters can either be dispensed with altogether or can be dimensioned in a less critical manner. Furthermore, dimethyl polysiloxane can be used over a wide temperature range from -70 ° C to 250 ° C. With this arrangement it is possible to couple up to 300 W / cm ^{3 of} plasma without melting the quartz bulb 2. Compared to the usual air cooling of a plasma source, the noises that otherwise occur with a high air flow are eliminated, which is psychologically more pleasant for the patient.

If you want to do without silicone oil cooling in the electrodeless system, a rotating plasma quartz ball can be used, which is arranged on a shaft, for example, and when rotating in an E or E ₁₁₂ mode resonator, an average field distribution results on average. It also increases the effective surface area for convection cooling. The ball rotation preferably takes place in two planes, so that on average there is complete field mixing. A so-called wobble rotation is alternatively and technically simpler to implement, ie the rod itself rotates around a cone shell during a rotation about the z-axis.

6 shows a spectrum of a typical gallium mercury Plasma emitter shown. The irradiance in the wavelength range between 300-400 nm is essentially determined by a peak at 364 nm and a peak at 313 nm, the former forming the UVA component and the latter forming the UVB component. These peaks represent typical spectral ranges of the mercury. The characteristics of the peaks fluctuate considerably with the manufacturing tolerances, although the UVA content is less than 20% and the UVB content is less than 0.5% in relation to the irradiance of the wavelength range between 400 Is -440 nm. Due to the absolutely low irradiance in the UVA and UVB range, these ranges are not shown in the following spectra.

7-10 show different spectra with different doping, the irradiance being plotted on the Y axis in mW / cm ² per 0.5 nm at a distance of 50 cm. The spectra shown show that with a weight ratio of mercury to gallium iodide of 8.8

Emission in the spectral range between 400-440 nm decreases significantly. With the weight ratios 22 and 44, the yield in the spectral region of interest is much better. A further increase in the emission in the range between 400-440 nm is possible by adding indium iodide in the mercury / indium iodide ratio of 20-200. With the addition of small amounts of indium iodide, an increase in indium emission in the 405 nm range is possible without the blue emission in the 500 nm range worsening the energy yield in the spectral range of interest between 400-440 nm.

11 shows a schematic illustration of a whole-body irradiation device for a patient 21. For this purpose, a large number of the optical radiation sources are arranged in an array with respect to one another, a parabolic reflector 22 being associated with each optical radiation source. When using the cooling units described, they can be connected to each other in a meandering shape. Alternatively, however, only individual cooling units of the radiation sources can be combined, so that several cooling circuits with pumps are then used. Preferably the upper and lower parabolic reflectors 22 and the side walls are tilted downwards or upwards by approximately 5 ° in order to obtain a more uniform radiation power over the radiation surface. With a lamp length of 190 cm and a reflector opening angle of 8 °, the optimal radiation level is obtained at a distance of 45-50 cm. Due to the high radiation output, the space between the radiation arrangement and the patient is preferably cooled with recirculating air conditioning.

A further preferred embodiment of the irradiation device 1 is shown in cross section in FIG. The

Irradiation device 1 comprises a gallium plasma emitter 20 with a quartz tube 21. The quartz tube 21 has, for example, a diameter of approximately 20 mm. The quartz tube 21 is preferably formed from UVC absorbing quartz to prevent the formation of ozone. A first cladding tube 22 is arranged around the quartz tube 21, the cladding tube consisting for example of Duran glass. The cladding tube 22 is spaced 20 mm from the quartz tube 21, for example, and is formed with a wall thickness of approximately 3 mm. There is air between the quartz tube 21 and the cladding tube 22. Arranged around the first cladding tube 22 is a second outer cladding tube 23, which likewise preferably consists of Duran glass and has a wall thickness of 3 mm, the distance between the first cladding tube 22 and the second cladding tube 23 being approximately 10 mm. There is water between the two cladding tubes 22, 23, it being possible to use the radiation cooler detectors of the preceding exemplary embodiments in order to achieve a closed cooling circuit. The advantage of this indirect cooling of the quartz tube 21 is that it avoids blackening due to precipitation of mercury compounds on the quartz tube 21 and the quartz tube 21 can be operated at optimal operating temperatures between 600-900 ° C.

Claims

Irradiation facility for therapeutic and cosmetic purposes

1. radiation device for therapeutic and cosmetic purposes for the treatment of primarily T-cell-mediated skin diseases, in particular atopic dermatitis (neurodermatitis), cutaneous T-cell lymphoma, Lieber ruber, alopecia areata, systemic lupus erythematosus and psoriasis and for cosmetic tanning, characterized in that the irradiation device comprises at least one optical radiation source which generates an irradiance of at least 2 mW / cm ² on a surface to be irradiated in the wavelength interval of 400-440 nm and an irradiance of less than 21% in the wavelength interval of 300-400 nm. the irradiance in

Wavelength range of 400-440 nm generated.

2. Irradiation device according to claim 1, characterized in that the optical radiation source as a low-pressure mercury discharge lamp with one of the following

Phosphors Sr ₂ P ₂ 0 ₇ : Eu, (SrMg) ₂ P ₂ 0 ₇ : Eu, Sr ₅ CI (P0 ₄ ) ₃ : Eu, BaMg ₂ AI ₁₆ 0 ₂₇ : Eu, SrMgAI ₁₈ 0 ₃₉ : Eu, BaMg ₂ AI ₁₆ 0 ₂₇ : Eu: Mn, Sr ₃ (P0 ₄ ) ₂ : Eu, Ba ₃ (P0 ₄ ) ₂ : Eu, CaW0 ₄ : Pb or CaW0 ₄ .

3. Irradiation device according to claim 1, characterized in that the optical radiation source is designed as a metal halide lamp with an ignition gas and mercury and with metal halide additives gallium-indium-iodide, gallium iodide, selenium, antimony, zinc and / or cadmium.

4. Irradiation device according to claim 3, characterized in that the weight ratio between the mercury and the metal halide additive is 10-100.

. Irradiation device according to one of the preceding claims, characterized in that the discharge tube is partially mirrored in an electrode region (8) by means of zirconium oxide.

6. Irradiation device according to one of the preceding claims, characterized in that a glass pane is arranged as a UVB filter or a transparent, UV-impermeable plastic, in particular acrylic GS or polycarbonate as a UV filter, between the optical radiation source and the surface to be irradiated.

7. Irradiation device according to claim 6, characterized in that the UVB filter is designed as an evacuated cladding tube (6) around the optical radiation source.

8. Irradiation device according to claim 7, characterized in that the inside of the cladding tube (6) is coated with a phosphor according to claim 2.

9. Irradiation device according to claim 1, characterized in that the optical radiation source is designed as an electrodeless mercury-metal halide lamp which is filled with gallium, gallium iodide, gallium bromide and / or chloride and the at least one magnetron (18) with antenna (19) is assigned via the electromagnetic energy in a through a metallic

Shield (20) formed resonator can be coupled and in which a quartz piston (2) containing the dopants is arranged.

10. Irradiation device according to claim 9, characterized in that the resonator is designed as an E ₀₁ -mode resonator for the electromagnetic radiation coupled in by the magnetron (18).

11. Irradiation device according to one of the preceding claims, characterized in that the irradiation device is designed with an IR filter.

12. Irradiation device according to one of the preceding claims, characterized in that the irradiation device

Cooling unit is assigned.

13. Irradiation device according to claim 12, characterized in that the cooling unit is designed as a transparent cladding tube (11) with an inlet and an outlet (12, 13) around the optical

Radiation source is arranged around, an IR radiation-absorbing coolant (17) circulating via the inlet and outlet (12, 13).

14. Irradiation device according to claim 13, characterized in that the coolant (17) is water or silicone oil.