Clinical effectiveness of applicator brachytherapy for psoriasis vulgaris

Objective: To evaluate the efficacy of ⁹⁰Sr/⁹⁰Y applicator brachytherapy as a treatment for psoriasis vulgaris. Methods: A total of 108 patients with psoriasis vulgaris received either the ⁹⁰Sr/⁹⁰Y applicator brachytherapy or the amino-polypeptide drug therapy. The brachytherapy group was treated every other day; each course consisted of five sessions for a total dose of 30 Gy to 50 Gy. The drug therapy group was treated with 15 tablets of amino-polypeptide per day for 9 weeks. Results: The success rate of the treatment for psoriasis vulgaris was significantly higher (χ² = 11.17, P < 0.05) in the brachytherapy group (87.93%) than in the drug therapy group (60.00%). The rates of adverse reaction in the two groups were 17.24% and 32.00%, respectively, although this disparity was not significantly different (χ² = 3.20, P > 0.05). The relapse rate was significantly lower (χ² = 5.67, P < 0.05) in the brachytherapy group (21.88%) than in the drug therapy group (56.25%). Conclusions: The ⁹⁰Sr/⁹⁰Y applicator brachytherapy is both simple and painless, with a high success rate and low relapse rate; thus, brachytherapy is one of the most effective treatment for psoriasis vulgaris. (authors)