Tacalcitol and narrow-band phototherapy in patients with vitiligo

Background. Vitiligo is a skin disease characterized by loss of normal pigmentation in the skin. Several treatments exist but none is really effective. Recently, perturbations of calcium homeostasis in vitiliginous epidermis have been described. Aim. Based on these findings, the aim of this prospective, randomized, open-label study was to compare the effectiveness of narrow-band ultraviolet B (NB-UVB) phototherapy alone and the combination of NB-UVB and topical application of the vitamin D-3 analogue tacalcitol in the treatment of vitiligo. Methods. In total, 32 subjects with generalized vitiligo and symmetrical lesions were enrolled in the study. Subjects were instructed to apply tacalcitol ointment daily to the lesion on the side randomly selected to receive combination therapy. All subjects received NB-UVB phototherapy on a twice-weekly schedule. Results. Addition of topical tacalcitol to NB-UVB treatment improved the extent of repigmentation and increased the response rate in patients with vitiligo compared with NB-UVB treatment alone. Conclusion. Application of tacalcitol ointment in combination with twice-weekly NB-UVB phototherapy is an effective alternative treatment for patients with generalized vitiligo.