Source: Ophthalmology  |  Posted 9 years ago

Narrow-band ultraviolet B (UVB) phototherapy combined with calcipotriol ointment appears to be more effective for psoriasis than UVB phototherapy alone.

These results are reported by investigators from the Department of Dermatology at Seoul National University Hospital in Seoul, Korea.

Previous studies have shown conflicting results for the calcipotriol plus phototherapy combination, according to the investigators.

In their study, ten psoriasis patients were treated with a combination of calcipotriol ointment plus UVB phototherapy, and 18 psoriasis patients were treated with UVB phototherapy alone.

Phototherapy was performed once a day three times per week with a stepwise increase of 0.05 J/cm[^]2[].

Results showed that 90.0 percent of the patients in the combination therapy group reached grade IV by the end of therapy compared with 61.1 percent in the phototherapy group.

During the early stages of treatment, patients in the combined therapy group showed more rapid improvement in Psoriasis Area and Severity Index scores compared with the phototherapy group.

Final and total UVB doses required to reach grade IV were slightly, but not significantly, lower in the combined therapy group. Total number of irradiations and duration of treatment were also similar between the two treatment groups.

Adverse effects were similar between the two groups although their frequency was slightly higher in the combined treatment group.

Combined therapy brought more patients to grade IV and resulted in greater improvement early in treatment, the investigators conclude. They urge additional studies to confirm these results.