Atopic dermatitis (AD) is a common, chronically relapsing inflammatory skin disease characterised by itchy eczematous skin lesions; the exact pathogenesis of AD remains unclear. Conventional therapies, including topical corticosteroids or phototherapy is not effective in some patients particularly when the suffer from chronic disease with wide spread skin involvement.
Extracorporeal photochemotherapy (ECP) in AD is a safe and likely effective treatment first described in 1994. ECP is a form of phototherapy where blood is exposed outside the body to the photoactivated drug 8-methoxypsoralen (8-MOP) before being returned to the body. Many retrospective studies have been performed but this is the first prospective study and it confirms that extracorporeal photochemotherapy is effective in severe refractory atopic dermatitis. In particular female and/or erythrodermic patients may favorably respond to the treatment.
Interested in knowing more? Read the article for free until 8th October.
Extracorporeal photochemotherapy as systemic monotherapy of severe, refractory atopic dermatitis: results from a prospective trial
Peter Wolf, Dimitrios Georgas, Nordwig S. Tomi, Christoph M. Schempp and Klaus Hoffmann
Photochem. Photobiol. Sci., 2013, Advance Article
You may also be interested in this review article, also free to access until 8th October.
Photopheresis (extracorporeal photochemotherapy)
Franz Trautinger, Ulrike Just and Robert Knobler
Photochem. Photobiol. Sci., 2012, Advance Article
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