Comparison of the efficacy and safety of the 308 nm excimer laser for the treatment of localized psoriasis in adults and in children: a pilot study.

The 308-nm excimer laser has been shown to be safe and efficacious in the treatment of localized mild-to-moderate plaque-type psoriasis in adults. However, the laser's safety and efficacy has not yet been demonstrated in children. Four of seven children with a mean age of 11.0 years and 12 of 18 adults with a mean age of 48.8 years completed the full protocol. The most common reason for incompletion was noncompliance unrelated to side effects. Both the children (p=0.0200) and the adult groups (p=0.0009) yielded a significant decrease in psoriatic severity scores of their respective target lesions. The children group had a greater reduction (p=0.008) from a mean baseline target (PSS) of 5.75+/-1.71 to final of 0.50+/-0.58 (91.3% reduction) as compared to the adult treatment group from a mean baseline psoriatic severity score of 5.00+/-1.15 to final of 1.92+/-1.11 (61.6% reduction). However, there was no statistical difference between the mean total treatments required to achieve this result (p=0.112). Side effects were common, albeit minor and well tolerated. In conclusion, the 308 nm excimer laser appears to be a safe and effective treatment for localized psoriasis in children as well as in adults.