Efficacy of therapy with 311nm narrow-band UVB 311nm in the treatment of patients with alopecia areata associated with atopic dermatitis

Abstract

Introduction. Atopic dermatitis (AD) is among a comorbid conditions in alopecia areata (AA), that influence the risk of development, severity of AA and the immunologic profile of the perifollicular inflammatory process. Narrowband UVB-311 nm, which has been successfully used in AD, is considered as a treatment for AA with limited efficacy, but may contribute to AA regression when combined with other therapies. The anti-inflammatory effect combined with the relative safety make it relevant to study the possibility of using this method in the treatment of AA in children.Aim. To evaluate the efficacy of NB-UVB 311 nm in the complex therapy of pediatric patients with coexisting diseases: AA and AD.Materials and methods. We conducted an open cohort comparative study with 49 patients 5–12 years old (mean age 7.4 ± 0.38 y.o.) with different clinical forms of AA. Group 1 included 22 patients with concomitant AD, group 2 consisted of 27 patients without AD. All patients received standard therapy of AA with topical glucocorticosteroids; patients of the first group also received a course of total NB-UVB 311 nm for the treatment of AD. The response to treatment was evaluated after 3 months and was considered as positive when hair regrowth was more than 30%.Results. In group 1 there was a significant predominance of patients who responded to treatment (77%) compared to group 2 – 48% (OR 3.7; CI [1.05;12.8] p = 0.045); the mean percentage value of SALT index in group 1 decreased by 46% from baseline values, in group 2 – by 26.6%; when comparing the groups by the percentage of alopecia regression p = 0.027.Conclusions. Combined treatment of AA including NB-UVB 311 nm, contributes to the tendency to more intensive hair regrowth. NB-UVB 311 nm can be considered as an additional option in the treatment of AA, associated with AD.