Combination therapy in the treatment of psoriasis.

In addition to topical monotherapy for mild and systemic monotherapy for moderate to severe psoriasis, combination therapy plays an important role in daily practice. Although clinical trials almost exclusively evaluate monotherapy regimens, in real life psoriasis patients are usually treated with combination therapies. All combinations are used, topical/topical, topical/UV-light, topical/systemic or UV-light/systemic. Often not only two but more drugs/therapies are combined. Not every combination provides additive or synergistic effects. Some combinations are not possible and may be regarded as contraindications. Data on a benefit-risk-assessment are much more sparse in medical literature as compared to monotherapies. We summarize current knowledge about the use of combination therapies in psoriasis on the basis of published literature in the form of a table to show which combinations are possible, useful or which can not be recommended. This provides a quick overview of available options.