الفهرس 
PSORIASISOnly 14 pages are availabe for public view
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Abstract
P
soriasis is a chronic inflammatory skin disease with a prevalence of about 2% worldwide. The classical clinical manifestations are sharply demarcated, erythematous, pruritic plaques covered in silvery scales. The plaques can coalesce and cover large areas of skin. Common locations include the trunk, the extensor surfaces of the limbs, and the scalp. On microscopic examination psoriasis has a distinctive histological representation. However, diagnosis is mainly made clinically as clinical presentation is usually highly characteristic. Therefore a skin biopsy to confirm diagnosis is frequently omitted.
Established treatment options for psoriasis include topical application of corticosteroids and vitamin D3 analogues, psoralen plus ultraviolet (UV) phototherapy (PUVA), UVB phototherapy and systemic therapy. Choice of treatment is affected by body surface area, severity of lesions, efficacy and side‐effects of therapeutic options, comorbidities and convenience for the patient.
Narrowband UVB phototherapy (NBUVB, 311–313 nm) is an established treatment option for psoriasis. Mode of action is based on targeting both epidermal keratinocytes and lymphocytes, resulting in immune suppression, alteration of cytokine expression and cell cycle arrest, which may all contribute to the suppression of disease activity in psoriatic lesions.
Dermoscopy is a noninvasive method that facilitates the visualization of structures under the skin surface, enhancing the diagnostic ability of physicians above that of a naked eye inspection.
Psoriatic lesions under dermoscopy show regularly distributed, dotted vessels over a light red background and white diffuse or centrally located scales.
Dermoscopy is not only used for distinguishing psoriasis from other skin inflammatory diseases but also is used in monitoring patients’ response to treatment. In this regard, a recent report showed that dermoscopy might be a useful additional tool for evaluating the response of psoriatic patients to biologic agents.
This study was designed to assess the role of dermoscope for monitoring patients with chronic plaque psoriasis on narrowband ultraviolet B Phototherapy.
The present study represents a Cohort Descriptive Study which was carried out on 30 patients with chronic plaque psoriasis subjected to treatment with narrowband ultraviolet B phototherapy.
Each participant was subjected to a detailed history taking and careful clinical examination. Clinical and dermoscopic evaluation of the psoriatic lesion at baseline “W0” and at each follow-up visit (after 6 weeks “W6” and 12 weeks “W12”) of phototherapy were done.
Results of our study yielded that a significant association was noted between changes in the vessel distribution in psoriatic lesions and the response to treatment according to Psoriasis Area and Severity Index score assessment along treatment visits, whereas presence of globular blood vessels were significantly associated with poor clinical response.
In conclusion, dermoscope is a rapid simple tool to predict the response of psoriatic patients to phototherapy using vascular pattern assessment.