Does Using a Tanning Bed Help Treat Psoriasis?

Dr. Jerry Bagel

Have you ever wondered how light therapy can help psoriasis patients? Phototherapy involves exposing the skin to ultraviolet light on a regular basis. It is one of the most effective and safest treatments for patients with moderate to severe psoriasis.

Essentially, the skin, or epidermis, of a psoriasis patient grows too quickly. A normal epidermis takes 28 days to grow. For those with psoriasis, it takes only four days. 

Narrowband ultraviolet B (UVB) rays at 311 nanometers is the wave length of a UVB ray that maximizes the benefit and reduces the risk of skin cancer in the treatment of psoriasis. Narrowband UVB decreases the growth rate of the epidermis allowing the skin to become normal. Also, narrowband UVB rays decrease the proliferation of T cells (immune cells) in the dermis, which is elevated in psoriatic skin and is one of the causes of the increased growth rate of the epidermis.

While light is beneficial for psoriasis, don’t assume that the lamps of a tanning bed and the phototherapy provided at a medical dermatologist’s office are the same thing.

Tanning beds utilize ultraviolet A (UVA) light. UVA wave lengths do not decrease the growth rate of the epidermis. UVA rays promote tanning, but has very little therapeutic efficacy in the treatment of psoriasis.

The National Psoriasis Foundation does not support the use of tanning beds as a treatment option for psoriasis. The American Academy of Dermatology, the FDA and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention all discourage the use of tanning beds and sun lamps. The ultraviolet radiation from these devices can damage the skin, cause premature aging and increase the risk of skin cancer.

While phototherapy is an effective therapy and can keep people clear for six months or more, it only works 70% of the time. In other instances it may be more beneficial to speak with your dermatologist about biologic therapy.

Windsor Dermatology is the home of the Psoriasis Treatment Center of Central New Jersey, the state’s first complete facility for advanced psoriasis clinical research. Call us at (609) 443-4500 to schedule an appointment to find out more about treatment options to reduce your psoriasis symptoms.

Clearing Up Psoriasis with the Excimer Laser

The safest treatment for moderate to severe psoriasis is narrowband UVB treatment. Utilizing a monochromatic ultraviolet wavelength, the patient stands in a light box three times per week for 12 weeks. Each treatment takes less than five minutes! The success rate for clearing the psoriasis is 70% and patients stay clear for six months or longer 40% of the time.

Although the treatment uses UVB rays, there is no increased risk of skin cancer. Since normal skin burns quicker than psoriatic plaques, the amount of phototherapy administered is limited by the normal skin burning and one can only increase the dosage by 10-15% of the previous dose.

By utilizing this laser treatment to localized plaques, one can increase the dose by 30% of the previous dose and clear plaques in 16 treatments. The treatment is only administered to psoriatic plaques and spares other areas of otherwise normal skin.

Utilizing the Pharos Excimer laser, we have been able to clear psoriatic plaques in 16 treatments (twice per week for eight weeks) each treatment taking less than 10 minutes. In addition, due to the small spot size of the apparatus, we can treat areas of the body that were not accessible in the UVB booths, such as the scalp and groin, as well as other localized areas of psoriasis such as the hands and feet, with remarkable success.

Laser treatment for psoriasis is covered by most major insurance plans. Call us today to find out more about the various treatment options available at Windsor Dermatology, home of the Psoriasis Treatment Center of Central New Jersey.

Jerry Bagel, M.D.
David Nieves, M.D.