EFFICACY OF THE COMBINATION OF FRACTIONAL LASER CO2 AND NARROWBAND ULTRAVIOLET B IN THE TREATMENT OF NON-SEGMENTAL VITILIGO

Abstract

Objectives: To evaluate the efficacy of the combination of fractional laser CO2and narrowband ultraviolet B (NB-UVB) in the treatment of non-segmental vitiligo.Materials and methods: An prospective half-body comparative clinical study, was conducted on 31 lesions of vitiligo in 17 patients with non-segmental vitiligo. Patients were treated with 3 monthly sessions of half-body fractional laser CO2and NB-UVB was administered to the entire body 5 days after each fractional laser interval 3 times per week for 4 months. Objective clinical assessments were evaluated on the area of the lesion using Adobe Lightroom program, adverse effects, and patient satisfaction. Results: There was a good improvement in the repigmentation on laser side compared to control side, but not significant. The improvement was statistically significant on laser side than control side on trunk and in the group of stable vitiligo. We observed the mix repigmentation of marginal and perifollicular was the most frequent (48,4%). Noticeable adverse effects were pain, burning sensation, erythema, swelling, pruritus and hyperpigmentation. No activated vitiligo, Koebner phenomenon, infection or scarring was found in our patients.Conclusion: The combination of fractional laser CO2and NB-UVB could be considered a safe treatment of stable non-segmental vitiligo, especially on trunk.