The Journal of Practical Medicine ›› 2025, Vol. 41 ›› Issue (17): 2646-2652.doi: 10.3969/j.issn.1006-5725.2025.17.006

• Clinical Advances • Previous Articles    

Research progress on the phototherapy in vitiligo

Rongyin GAO1,Congchong WAN2,Chuanwei YIN3,Jinpeng LÜ3()   

  1. Department of Pharmacy,the First People′s Hospital of Changzhou,the Third Affiliated Hospital of Soochow University,Changzhou 213000,Jiangsu,China
  • Received:2025-05-22 Online:2025-09-10 Published:2025-09-05
  • Contact: Jinpeng Lü E-mail:lvjinpeng1988@126.com

Abstract:

Phototherapy plays a significant role in vitiligo treatment. Narrow-band ultraviolet B (NB-UVB) remains the first-line phototherapy for non-segmental vitiligo in clinical practice. In recent years, visible light has emerged as a novel therapeutic approach for vitiligo. Studies indicate that helium-neon laser demonstrates superior efficacy in segmental vitiligo, blue light is more effective for localized vitiligo, and NB-UVB is better suited for generalized or extensive vitiligo. Different phototherapy modalities exhibit distinct mechanisms of action, involving multiple biological proteins and signaling pathways in melanocyte activation and repigmentation. This review summarizes recent advances in phototherapy for vitiligo treatment.

Key words: vitiligo, phototherapy, NB-UVB, helium-neon laser, blue light

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