Short course of Apremilast and phototherapy combination not sufficient for psoriasis management

A combination of Phototherapy and apremilast was not effective for the management of Psoriasis Vulgaris as per a recent study that was published in The Journal of Dermatology. 

Apremilast is an oral phosphodiesterase-4 inhibitor. Phototherapy and apremilast are commonly used in the management of moderate to severe Psoriasis Vulgaris. But the current evidence on the efficacy and safety of their combination is not sufficient. Hence researchers conducted a multicenter, randomized controlled study to compare the efficacy and safety between phototherapy as monotherapy and a combination of phototherapy and apremilast in patients with Psoriasis Vulgaris.

All the patients with moderate to severe Psoriasis Vulgaris were randomized to two groups of combination therapy with 29 participants and monotherapy with 13 participants. All patients underwent an 8-week phototherapy regimen comprising irradiation with narrowband UV-B. The patients in the combination group were also administered 10 mg to 60 mg of oral apremilast. Psoriasis Area and Severity Index (PASI) score from baseline to week 8 were the tools used to estimate the percentage of improvement. The percentage of patients who achieved ≥75% improvement in the changes in body surface area (BSA) and scores of EuroQol 5-dimensions 5-level, Dermatology Life Quality Index, and visual analog scale for pruritis from baseline to 4 and 8 weeks and any adverse events were also evaluated.