Here's a recent news story about an alzheimer laser helmet to treat alzheimer's disease
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/health/7208768.stm

Here's a few parts of the article. Notice it says they found that it stimulates the growth of cells.

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It delivers low levels of infra-red light, which researchers at the University of Sunderland, believe may stimulate the growth of brain cells.

Tests in mice showed it improved learning ability and a study in humans is due to begin in the summer.

The infra-red therapy was first developed to treat cold sores. But when researchers studied how it worked, they found it stimulated growth of cells and may have applications in other conditions.

In tests in people with dementia using infra-red lasers, eight out of nine people showed some improvement, said Dr Gordon Dougal, a GP and director of Virulite, a medical research company based in County Durham.

However, in order to safely deliver the treatment through the scalp, he developed a helmet which bathes the brain in low levels of infra-red light and would only need to be worn for 10 minutes a day.