Clinical efficacy of a 308 nm excimer laser in the treatment of vitiligo

Objective To investigate the clinical efficacy and safety of the treatment of vitiligo using a 308 nm excimer laser. Method Thirty-six patients with 44 vitiligo patches were treated using a 308 nm excimer laser, which was performed twice a week, for a total of 30 treatments. The therapeutic efficacy and safety were then evaluated. Results After 30 treatments:(1) 27/44 patches (61.4%) achieved more than 75% repigmentation, 4/44 lesions (9.1%) showed 51-75% repigmentation, 10/44 (22.7%) showed 26-50% repigmentation and 3/44 (6.8%) showed 1-25% repigmentation.(2) Of the 44 patches of vitiligo, 20/27 (74.1%) lesions on the face/neck, 9/9 (100%) on the trunk and 2/8 (25.0%) on the extremities showed >= 50% repigmentation. The repigmentation (>= 50%) in face/neck and trunk were much higher than that in the extremities (P < 0.05).(3) The repigmentation (>= 50%) in disease duration of < 2 years and > 2 years were 100.0% and 46.2% (P < 0.05).(4) The average cumulative doses in the face/neck, trunk and extremities were 7.92 +/- 5.26, 9.93 +/- 7.36 and 22.13 +/- 8.15 J/cm2. The doses in the face/neck and trunk were much lower than those in the extremities. (P < 0.05). Side effects were limited mainly to symptomatic erythema. Conclusion The clinical data indicate that the treatment of vitiligo using a 308 nm excimer laser is safe and effective. However, lesion location and disease duration may be the key factors affecting the clinical outcome.