It is now accepted that narrowband UV-B light therapy can be very helpful for psoriasis but it also believed that abnormalities in the metabolism of Vitamin D may be implicated in the condition.
In an attempt to link the two a trial was carried out by Dr Caitriona Ryan, then of St Vincent’s Hospital in Dublin and now of the Baylor Research Institute in Dallas. With colleagues she assessed 30 patients with psoriasis who were treated with narrowband UV-B three times per week until their psoriasis cleared between October 2008 and February 2009.
Their serum vitamin D levels – measured before the study, after four weeks of treatment and after completing treatment – were compared with those of 30 control patients who also had psoriasis but did not undergo UV-B therapy. Psoriasis severity was also assessed before and after treatment.
Levels of serum 25-hydroxyvitamin D [25(OH)D] – the most accurate measurement of vitamin D levels in the body – increased significantly among individuals receiving UV-B therapy, from a median (midpoint) of 23 nanograms per milliliter to 59 nanograms per milliliter at the end of treatment. There was no change in the control group.
At the end of the study, all patients in the treatment group had acceptable levels of vitamin D, but 75% of the control group had vitamin D levels of less than 20 nanograms per milliliter of serum 25(OH)D.
Moreover psoriasis severity scores in the UV-B group decreased from a median of 7.1 at the beginning to 0.5 at the end of the study, but did not change in the control group.
However, there did not appear to be any causal relationship between the therapeutic effect of the light on the psoriasis and on the increased levels of vitamin D – they were just both beneficial results of the light treatment.
Caitriona Ryan; Benvon Moran; Malachi J. McKenna; Barbara F. Murray; Jennifer Brady; Paul Collins; Sarah Rogers; Brian Kirby. The Effect of Narrowband UV-B Treatment for Psoriasis on Vitamin D Status During Wintertime in Ireland. Arch Dermatol, 2010; 146 (8): 836-842
Couetesy of Science Daily
Click here for more research on psoriasis
For links to skin and personal care products click here.
Top of page |
