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The most common treatment frequency for all forms of uv phototherapy was three times per week
Type:Uv phototherapy Time:2015-05-21 9:31:50 Dosage of phototherapy Sixty-eight percent of dermatologists gave a fixed starting dose of NB-UVB to all patients, whereas 31% based the starting dose on the UVB-determined minimal erythema dose (MED). The same was true for oral PUVA treatment; 66% of dermatologists began treatment at the preset fixed dose. For topical PUVA, 54% chose the dosage according to the patient's skin phototype, and the other 46% used a fixed protocol for all patients. Dermatologists' responses regarding calculating cumulative doses for different modalities were variable. For PUVA, 50% (25/50) always calculated the cumulative dose. Only 2% never calculated the cumulative dose for PUVA. For NB-UVB, 76.7% reported always calculating the cumulative dose. Three percent indicated that they never estimated the NB-UVB cumulative dose. Photoprotection The majority of dermatologists recognized the importance of photoprotection during phototherapy treatments. Photoprotection for the eyes was always provided by 97% of the respondents (104/107). Protective shields were always used for the male genitalia by 88% and for the female genitalia by 74.5% of the respondents. Only 15% used photoprotection for moles. Thirty-five percent did not protect nipples during phototherapy. Fifteen percent (16/107) always used protective covers for non-vitiliginous skin, whereas the remainder of the dermatologists never used protective shields for normal skin. Comparisons of psoralen + ultraviolet A and narrowband ultraviolet B Half of the respondents preferred NB-UVB for better color matching with the surrounding skin, whereas 45.3% were unable to judge which modality was more effective. For stable or durable repigmentation, 31% (33/104) preferred NB-UVB, whereas 16% favored PUVA. For faster repigmentation, 37.3% preferred NB-UVB, 23.5% preferred PUVA, and 39% could not evaluate this effect for both modalities. NB-UVB was regarded as the more effective therapy by 43.7% of dermatologists. Half of the respondents considered local NB-UVB treatment for acral vitiligo ineffective, and only 26% believed it was effective for the treatment of local NB-UVB of the hands and feet. Treatment duration Regarding the phototherapy treatment duration, the approaches were variable. After an average of 26 ¡À 1.8 sessions of PUVA without repigmentation, the dermatologists considered it ineffective and terminated the treatment. NB-UVB was also stopped after 34.3 ¡À 2.5 sessions without response. Forty-seven percent of the respondents (50/106) said that they would limit the number of phototherapy sessions to reduce the risks of skin cancer, whereas 52.8% were not concerned about skin cancer risks with extended sessions. According to our survey, none of the dermatologists reported seeing any vitiligo patients develop skin cancer after phototherapy. Side effects and their management The most frequent side effects described were mild burns (16.5% ¡À 2.1) and pruritus (15.5% ¡À 1.7). A smaller number reported moderate (4.3%) or severe burns (1.7%). PUVA lentigines had been seen in 1.1% ¡À 3.5 of patients. For severe accidental UVB overdose, immediate treatments practiced by respondents included topical steroids (93.5%), cool or wet compresses (88%), emollients (81%), wet dressings, and oral paracetamol (63%). Forty-five percent of the respondents recommended oral nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs. Systemic corticosteroids were prescribed by 54.4%. Almost all dermatologists recommended different combinations of these treatment options.www.kerneluvb.com----The leader manufacturer of UVB Phototherapy.