title: Three hundred and eight nanometer excimer light therapy for alopecia universalis that is resistant to other treatments: A clinical study of 11 patients.
abstract: Three hundred and eight nanometer excimer light therapy has recently been reported to be effective against patchy alopecia areata (AA) in several clinical studies. However, these studies only included a few patients with severe forms of AA, and all of them exhibited poor outcomes. We further investigated the use of excimer light as a therapeutic option for cases of alopecia universalis (AU) that are resistant to other treatments. Eleven treatment-resistant AU patients were treated with a 308-nm excimer light at 2-week intervals for more than 16 sessions. Four patients achieved good responses and two patients exhibited poor responses. Three patients had Japanese skin type 1 and all of them achieved good responses. The radiation dose was increased until the patients exhibited marked erythema. The patients with Japanese skin type 3 who achieved good responses exhibited strong pigmentation at the irradiated sites. In conclusion, 308-nm excimer light therapy has significant effects on some AU patients who are resistant to other treatments and may be an alternative therapeutic option for AU. During the treatment of AU, high doses of radiation should be administrated until a strong inflammatory skin reaction is seen.
authors.affiliation: Department of Dermatology, Graduate School of Medical Science, Kyoto Prefectural University of Medicine, Kyoto, Japan.
authors.forename: Yukiyasu
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Arakawa
authors.affiliation: Department of Dermatology, Graduate School of Medical Science, Kyoto Prefectural University of Medicine, Kyoto, Japan.
authors.forename: Tomoko
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Nomiyama
authors.affiliation: Department of Dermatology, Graduate School of Medical Science, Kyoto Prefectural University of Medicine, Kyoto, Japan.
authors.forename: Norito
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Katoh
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D000505:Alopecia / Q000628:therapy*; D004890:Erythema / Q000209:etiology; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D017495:Hyperpigmentation / Q000209:etiology; D007564:Japan; D054018:Lasers, Excimer / Q000009:adverse effects / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D028022:Low-Level Light Therapy / Q000009:adverse effects / Q000379:methods*; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D012880:Skin Pigmentation / Q000528:radiation effects; D016896:Treatment Outcome; D055815:Young Adult
keywords: 308 nm; alopecia universalis; excimer light; phototherapy; ultraviolet