Combating Skin Conditions with Phototherapy Treatment

Main Category: Dermatology
Article Date: 04 Sep 2005 - 7:00 PDT

email to a friend   printer friendly   view / write opinions   rate article

At any age skin conditions disrupt sleep, dictate your dress code and can negatively impact one's self esteem. UVBioTek and dermatologists around the USA offer patients suffering from skin conditions tips on achieving relief and the benefits of phototherapy treatment.

While dry skin is a fairly common occurrence, it can be a serious problem if you suffer from skin conditions like eczema and psoriasis. With proper care and treatments you can help reduce dry skin and itching by following recommendations listed below:

• Moisturize Daily
• Wear cotton or soft fabrics
• Take luke warm baths and showers using mild soap or an non soap cleanser
• Pat your skin dry with a soft towel- do not rub
• Apply a moisturizer with in three minutes of bathing to lock in moisture. Use a humidifier in dry or cold weather
• Keep your nails short to encourage avoiding scratching and breaking the skin
• Avoid having carpets in your house
• Give your pet dander treatments
• Reduce unnecessary stress in your life
• Avoid using perfumed soaps, laundry detergents and moisturizers

Phototherapy Treatments:

While there is no cure for ongoing conditions like eczema, which causes inflammation of the skin, short term relief is available in the form of topical immunomodulators, steroids, antihistamines and antibiotics. But for long term relief, UVBioTek offers an at-home phototherapy system that provides a treatment that is safe, quick and convenient. Advanced phototherapy light treatments help patients reduce intense flare-ups that cause skin to become extremely itchy, red and irritated. Phototherapy has become an increasingly popular and effective treatment for psoriasis, vitiligo, eczema, and other skin conditions. UVBioTek encourages patients to ask your doctor about the benefits of a prescription. Your doctor is responsible for assuring that you are receiving the proper exposure based upon your skin type and the diagnosis of your skin condition and will provide a prescription for the system. Most insurance will cover about 80% of the equipment cost (Cost: Model 800B $4,850.00, 1600B $5,950.00)

About UVBioTek:

Phototherapy with UVB light can manage skin conditions, effectively maintaining a remissive state. The goal of the UVBioTek treatment is to reduce inflammation and to slow rapid skin cell division. Exposure to sunlight has long been a proven technique that helps people with psoriasis, but the full broadband UVA and UVB light from the sun can damage healthy skin, as can exposure to full body ultraviolet light, which is sometimes used by physicians to treat the condition. Exposing these activated T cells to specific wavelengths of UV light causes them to die, a process called apoptosis. Apoptosis reduces inflammation and slows the overproduction of skin cells that cause plaques. If used properly there are almost no side effects. Narrow Band UVB, which corresponds to the most "biologically effective" range of the light spectrum, is the safest, most effective treatment and has fewer side effects than any other phototherapy treatment available for patients. Therefore, more and more doctors are prescribing this type of Narrow Band UVB treatment for patients suffering from psoriasis.

The sleek folding design of the UVBioTek system is suitable for even the smallest apartment. In fact, many people now have installations in riverboats, RVs, hallways, garages, bathrooms, bedrooms, walk-in closets, and even living rooms.

Advantages:

The biggest advantage is the quick and effective light treatments. The wrap-around design allows for one full, even, 360 degree exposure, which cuts treatment time down from 20-40 minutes to as little as 3-8 minutes. Having the ability to take routine phototherapy treatments at home can greatly improve quality of life while allowing many patients to remain free of skin conditions year round. For More Information log onto http://www.uvbiotek.com