Novel topical cream delivers safe and effective sunlight therapy for vitiligo by selectively filtering damaging ultraviolet radiation

Numerous studies have demonstrated that natural sunlight therapy at the Dead Sea provides therapeutic efficacy for vitiligo patients on par with artificial broadband and narrowband ultraviolet B (UVB) phototherapy; however, similar treatments at locals at or above sea level fail due to the development of erythema prior to sufficient therapeutic dosage. We conducted a pilot study at sea level to assess the efficacy of a novel topical cream that selectively filters nontherapeutic wavelengths of UVB from natural sunlight and delivers treatment for acrofacial vitiligo. In our pilot study, after an average of 11 weeks of treatment, all patients in the treatment arm responded to therapy. In particular, 28% of the treatment group had 70% surface area repigmentation, 28% had 50% repigmentation, and 44% had 30–40% repigmentation. In contrast, only 10% of the patients in the placebo arm had 20% repigmentation. Our results demonstrate that the novel topical cream can provide a safe and effective alternative to artificial light phototherapy.