Home UVB light treatment without Doctor/Derm

[ricoghardforth]

I've suffered from mild plaque psoriasis for the last ten years.  I started with it in and around my ears and it progressed to a patch on left knee, a patch on my  right shin and has been on a off my elbows ever since. I've also a small patch on my back which I can't reach.  I've been using Dovonex on and off and it don't appear to reduce the size of the patch's at all just maybe helps the thickness of the white scales and I try to keep the patchs to just a red mark by having long soaks in the bath where I cover the patches with aqueous cream before I gently rub off the white scaly skin build up using the tips of my fingers.  I've also been getting small patches on my eyelids for last couple of years and have been using a mild 1% steroid cream on them.    

I've just bought a uvb lamp off ebay from Poland with a Genuine PHILIPS PL-S 9W/01 G23 bulb which i'm hoping to use it to reduce the size of the  the patches on my legs and elbows.
However the instructions are very basic as you can see from my pics.  It says increase the dosage by 8 seconds per treatment and for the final dosage it must be recommended by a doctor based on skin reaction.  Which doesn't help as I wasn't going to go to the doctors as this treatment has not been prescribed by them.  So can any one help with at what point to you stop increasing the exposure time and at what point do you stop or start to decrease the expose times or do you just increase the duration between treatments.   Thank-you. 
   

[Fred]

Sorry but by what I know about it it is to be prescribed by professionals only. So if you purchased it from Ebay then you should be asking them and not us.

[jiml]

Hi Ricoghardforth and   to the forum, we are a small friendly bunch of sufferers here and are happy to share what knowledge we have with each other,
But Fred is correct and I had a look at the second picture which is the instruction sheet and it's not particularly helpful. I would ask for more comprehensive instructions from them.

A lot will depend on the strength of the bulb, the distance from the lamp, being very careful on your face as the goggles may not be effective as they are from a country without the stringent rules that are applied here for eye protection. There are so many variables

My advice would be go to your GP and ask to be referred to a dermatologist who can give you something that won't damage your skin any further and should help you get clear

Thanks for posting but I'm afraid it's a difficult one to advise on

[jiml]

I've suffered from mild plaque psoriasis for the last ten years.  I started with it in and around my ears and it progressed to a patch on left knee, a patch on my  right shin and has been on a off my elbows ever since. I've also a small patch on my back which I can't reach.  I've been using Dovonex on and off and it don't appear to reduce the size of the patch's at all just maybe helps the thickness of the white scales and I try to keep the patchs to just a red mark by having long soaks in the bath where I cover the patches with aqueous cream before I gently rub off the white scaly skin build up using the tips of my fingers.  I've also been getting small patches on my eyelids for last couple of years and have been using a mild 1% steroid cream on them.    

I've just bought a uvb lamp off ebay from Poland with a Genuine PHILIPS PL-S 9W/01 G23 bulb which i'm hoping to use it to reduce the size of the  the patches on my legs and elbows.
However the instructions are very basic as you can see from my pics.  It says increase the dosage by 8 seconds per treatment and for the final dosage it must be recommended by a doctor based on skin reaction.  Which doesn't help as I wasn't going to go to the doctors as this treatment has not been prescribed by them.  So can any one help with at what point to you stop increasing the exposure time and at what point do you stop or start to decrease the expose times or do you just increase the duration between treatments.   Thank-you. 
   

Just looked at the first picture and its not a lamp as I thought but a type of unit you place on your skin I see, the instructions are quite specific for duration times and by the time you get to their maximum dose you will know if it's any good .
Just be very wary, I would still be inclined to contact your doctor and tell him what you are doing

[ricoghardforth]

Here are what it looks like anyway which is what I was trying to do.

[jiml]

I wish you success with the unit, and will be interested to hear how effective it is, I've had a scout around the site and can't see any mention of these hand held units apart from the Philips one, and I cant remember reading of any member using them
but there is a thread about Philips introducing a hand held unit  Philips launch wearable light treatment for psoriasis

[ricoghardforth]

Thanks I'll let every one know.

[Fred]

I've tidied up the thread for you and moved your last image with the others, now you have found a way of showing them. Sorry to have been a bit off at first but we do sometimes get problems with people wanting to post spam.

Going back to this lamp and your question. I personally would recommend you seek professional advice from a dermatologist rather than go it alone, I'm not saying the lamp is no good but it is something that should be moderated professionally and using lamps wrongly can lead to serious problems later on in life.

You can get light treatment for free on the NHS and it will be far better than your lamp and you will be monitored.

Just my opinion.

[Kat]

I've had UV treatments at the doctor's office, as well as experience with tanning beds when I was younger. It partly depends on your skin coloring as for how long to start with. I think I had about enough time to sneeze my first visit at the doctor's office, seriously ... it was only for a couple minutes. Of course the bulbs there are probably very strong. Tanning beds always wanted to start me at around 5 minutes, even after telling them I do not burn easily even though I'm fair skinned.

Point being, it's going to be different for different people (no matter what the instructions say) I think it's better to ask a doctor's opinion but if you are going to go ahead, I would start very slowly.

[ricoghardforth]

I've tidied up the thread for you and moved your last image with the others, now you have found a way of showing them. Sorry to have been a bit off at first but we do sometimes get problems with people wanting to post spam.

Going back to this lamp and your question. I personally would recommend you seek professional advice from a dermatologist rather than go it alone, I'm not saying the lamp is no good but it is something that should be moderated professionally and using lamps wrongly can lead to serious problems later on in life.

You can get light treatment for free on the NHS and it will be far better than your lamp and you will be monitored.

Just my opinion.

Thanks for the advice.  I think I'm still going to give it a try.  I will probably visit the doctors after a couple of weeks and let them know what I'm doing see what there advice is.  None of the docs at my local surgery think my psoriasis is bad enough to be referred to a dermatologist.  I also don't think it would be considered bad enough to warrant NHS UVB treatment.  Also the time and travel costs for visiting a hospital for treatment probably put me off going down this route.