Treatment with ultraviolet light therapy is the main means of restoring
pigment to the white areas of vitiligo. Two types of light therapy are effective
in vitiligo. PUVA therapy and narrow-band UVB (311) phototherapy. PUVA therapy
consists of taking a medication called psoralens and then being exposed to
ultraviolet A light. Psoralens are distributed to the skin and there interact
with the UVA light to stimulate formation of new pigment cells in the skin.
Narrow-band phototherapy does not involve taking a medication and has a similar
but probably less powerful effect on pigment cells.
PUVA therapy has been used in India and the Middle-east for several thousand years for treatment of vitiligo and it has been used in America . Sunlight was used as the source of UVA light, but recently, more effective indoor sources of light have been developed. These improvements to the treatment have resulted in much better response rates and also have allowed definition of what the likely response will be in an individual patient. Narrow-band phototherapy was introduced in the 1990s.
Light therapy produces some repigmentation in almost all patients but the
extent of repigmentation does vary. The chief determinant of the response is the
location of the vitiligo. Vitiligo on the face almost always responds
completely, the trunk has a less favorable response and so on down to the tips
of the fingers and toes, which almost never respond. The duration and extent of
vitiligo do not influence the response.
Treatment has to be given two or three times each week. A trial of thirty treatments gives a fairly accurate indication of whether or not treatment will be worthwhile. If there is no response by treatment number thirty, it is pointless to continue. Treatment number fifty is the next milestone: if the response is not sustained it is unlikely that further repigmentation will occur.
Light therapy does not stop new areas of vitiligo appearing and repigmented areas can lose pigment again. However, it is very unusual for a patient to continue to show progression of vitiligo after 20-30 treatments. Furthermore, if a given patch of vitiligo is completely repigmented and filled in, it is very unusual to again lose the pigment; partial repigmentation of a patch is frequently lost.
Home UVB Phototherapy Safety
Safe for long-term use in adults, children, pregnant women, and immune-depressed persons
No increased risk of skin cancer, whereas biologic medications have a risk of organ toxicity and are linked with cancer
Our home uvb phototherapy units are equipped with safety features: controlled prescription timer, key-lock and more.
PUVA therapy has been used in India and the Middle-east for several thousand years for treatment of vitiligo and it has been used in America . Sunlight was used as the source of UVA light, but recently, more effective indoor sources of light have been developed. These improvements to the treatment have resulted in much better response rates and also have allowed definition of what the likely response will be in an individual patient. Narrow-band phototherapy was introduced in the 1990s.
Treatment has to be given two or three times each week. A trial of thirty treatments gives a fairly accurate indication of whether or not treatment will be worthwhile. If there is no response by treatment number thirty, it is pointless to continue. Treatment number fifty is the next milestone: if the response is not sustained it is unlikely that further repigmentation will occur.
Light therapy does not stop new areas of vitiligo appearing and repigmented areas can lose pigment again. However, it is very unusual for a patient to continue to show progression of vitiligo after 20-30 treatments. Furthermore, if a given patch of vitiligo is completely repigmented and filled in, it is very unusual to again lose the pigment; partial repigmentation of a patch is frequently lost.
Home UVB Phototherapy Safety
Safe for long-term use in adults, children, pregnant women, and immune-depressed persons
No increased risk of skin cancer, whereas biologic medications have a risk of organ toxicity and are linked with cancer
Our home uvb phototherapy units are equipped with safety features: controlled prescription timer, key-lock and more.
