Narrowband Ultraviolet B Phototherapy for Generalized Granuloma Annulare: Real-Life Experience and Review of the Literature.

Abstract

Generalized granuloma annulare (GA) is an uncommon noninfectious granulomatous dermatitis. Phototherapy is often considered first-line therapy, with more evidence for psoralen ultraviolet A than narrowband ultraviolet B (NB-UVB). We aimed to evaluate the effectiveness and safety of NB-UVB in generalized GA and to review the literature. In this observational, retrospective study, 11 patients with generalized GA who received NB-UVB between 2013 and 2023 were evaluated. Data from the patients were obtained from the phototherapy unit and clinical follow-up forms. Eleven patients, 10 (90.9%) female and 1 (9.1%) male were included in the study. The mean age of the patients was 57.6 ± 7.9 years. The mean disease duration was 26.9 ± 27.9 weeks. Three (27.2%) of the patients had interstitial GA. All patients showed improvement: NB-UVB therapy resulted in complete response in 18.2% of the patients and partial response in 81.8%. The mean number of NB-UVB sessions was 36.4 ± 13.8. The mean cumulative dose was 37.1 ± 25.6 J/cm2. There was no significant difference in the mean number of sessions and cumulative dose according to clinical response (P > .05). NB-UVB was extremely well tolerated. After phototherapy, patients were followed for at least 6 months; no relapses were observed. NB-UVB is an effective and safe treatment option in generalized GA.