Psoriasis is a skin disease with red scaly patches that affects around 3% of the population. In order to treat psoriasis the use of light treatment can be beneficial but usually doctors do not recommend this initially. In order to recommend a suitable treatment option for psoriasis sufferers doctors keep various factors in mind to find the best solution as every case is different.
For many psoriasis sufferers the first thing that doctors recommend is the application of topical treatment is considered best. Recommendation of light treatment is the secondary option when there is no response from topical treatments. When the patient’s large part of the skin is affected by psoriasis then the topical treatment is a costly as well as impractical option.
In case of psoriasis sufferer the immune system may be the cause due to the abnormal functioning of the type of white blood cell known as T-cells. These cells produce skin cells in large number which accumulates on the skin’s surface and form psoriasis. The scaly look of psoriasis is due to the flaking off of the skin cells.
In different condition of psoriasis the use of light therapy has proved to be effective. When the affected skin is exposed to UV light then it kills the active T-cells that were producing new skin cells and so the accumulation of the excessive cells reduces too. In the warm and tropical climates there are less cases of psoriasis so visiting such places can be beneficial for psoriasis sufferers and so they can feel improvement. This idea led to the creation of psoriasis light treatment in which special UV lamps are used to carry out the therapy under the supervision of medical professional.
There are different wavelengths of sunlight, or ultraviolet light but the mostly used include UVA and UVB. If only UVB light is used for psoriasis patients then it gives good results. For UVB light therapy to treat psoriasis the patient need to visit the doctor’s clinic so that the exposure of UVB light can be used with the special lamp.
Light treatment of psoriasis with the use of UVB lamp is quite effective as well as considered safe. Nowadays the narrow band UVB treatment is gaining more popularity as compared to the originally available broad band UVB lamps. The reason is that its results are faster and it also reduces the visible symptoms of psoriasis. Don’t forget to discuss with your doctor about the number of sessions that you will require.
Do not expect good results if you are doing it on your own or get it done from a local salon. Buying a UVB therapy device like your doctor use will be best so that you can use it at home. However, you cannot buy it without prescription from your doctor. You would also need to learn its safe use.
In order to deal severe cases of psoriasis the UVA light is not enough until some medications are combined with it. Use of psoralen, can be topical as well as for topical application and it has a property to sensitize the effect on the skin, so that penetration of UVA light to the skin can be made easy and it is called PUVA treatment, and there are side effects too which are more serious than UVB light therapy to treat psoriasis. Its short-term use can cause feeling of nausea, while if it is done for long-term then the risk of skin cancer becomes higher as well as skin’s premature ageing can also occur.
Use of UVB light therapy for treating psoriasis is the safest option. When this treatment is done and there are no signs of psoriasis then the patient only need to see doctor for regular check up so that he can monitor your condition. It is important to go for maintenance session of light therapy at least every few weeks to keep the resurfacing of psoriasis in check and also to delay the remission’s period. If the patients fail to go for maintenance sessions regularly then the chance of recurrence can increase.