Clinical Trial: Narrowband Ultraviolet B Versus Narrowband Ultraviolet B Plus Ultraviolet A1 for Atopic Eczema

Study Status: Recruiting
Recruit Status: Recruiting
Study Type: Interventional




Official Title: A Randomised Assessor-blinded Study to Compare Narrowband Ultraviolet B With Combined Narrowband Ultraviolet B and Ultraviolet A1 for Atopic Eczema

Brief Summary: Narrowband ultraviolet B phototherapy is the "standard" phototherapy for atopic eczema; ultraviolet A1 is sometimes used but is not a widely available treatment. We do not know the most important chromophores in treating atopic eczema; in which phototherapy is thought to work by improving epidermal barrier function, having beneficial effects on skin microbiome and local immunosuppression. It seems plausible that there are several chromophores and that 'targetting' several at once with different wavebands should help and for severe eczema that has not responded adequately to narrowband UVB or ultraviolet A1 alone the combination is sometimes used. This study is to test if the combination is moderately to greatly more effective than narrowband ultraviolet B monotherapy amongst patients referred for any form of first-line phototherapy for atopic eczema.