Comparison of psoralen-UVB and psoralen-UVA photochemotherapy in the treatment of psoriasis

Berker D, Sakuntabhai A, Diffey B, Matthews J, Farr P

J Am Acad Dermatol 1997;36:577-81

A study conducted by Berker and colleagues, examined the effectiveness of UVB and UVA phototherapy in conjunction with psoralen. Psoriasis clearance was possible with both forms of therapy; however, the most astounding result was the fewer required treatments to obtain clearance with the psoralen-UVB option. This study also showed that a lower portion of patients experienced psoriatic relapse if they had undergone psoralen-UVB rather than PUVA treatments. Findings from this study, as well as a similar comparison study, supports the use of psoralen in addition to narrowband UVB phototherapy to achieve the most “enhance[d] therapeutic response.”