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Archive for the ‘Basic information’ Category
Thursday, November 19th, 2009
It is all too common for dermatologists to suggest that patients with psoriasis or vitiligo go to tanning salons to see if it helps improve their condition. While this used to be a marginally viable treatment option, very few people see any results today. Unfortunately, their doctors often use the lack of a positive skin response as confirmation that phototherapy is simply ineffective for those patients… which generally leads to the next step; TNF Inhibitors (AKA: "Biologicals" & "Systemics" like Enbrel, Raptiva or Humira). While these truly can be miracle drugs for those with no better option, and whose condition is severe enough to justify the risk for serious adverse side effects, a large percentage who are taking now them would likely see positive results if they were able to use a real phototherapy system.
The reason for this misconception about tanning systems and any therapeutic benefits for treating skin conditions is simple; it used to be somewhat accurate. When tanning salons first became popular, the quality of the lamps used were relatively poor in that they emitted a lot of UVB light with the UVA that’s needed to tan. For this reason, it was not uncommon for users to get burned with tanning systems that had the older lamps. This undesirable side effect for tanning customers was precisely what was beneficial for medical patients.
Today’s higher quality lamps have reduced the amount of UVB produced by tanning systems to virtually nothing – an amount that is almost always far below what’s needed for the desired therapeutic response. The quality of medical UVB lamps has also improved greatly. Today’s Narrowband UVB lamps, in particular, are incredibly precise; they only emit light in the color range that has proved to be the most effective within a few nanometers.
This means the old-school advice for patients to seek medical benefits from commercial tanning systems is flawed. Most dermatologists are probably not aware of this, because most are against tanning at all – whether through commercial tanning systems or simply spending time outside in the Sun.
True phototherapy, like that obtained with medical UVB lighting systems from UVBioTek, is simply too effective for too many people to be so casually written off as "ineffective" before it has even been tried. Patients need to be clear with their doctors about this if they wish to avoid the risks and costs associated with even proper use of TNF Inhibitors. Again, such medications are absolutely critical for many people, but a large number of them could be seeing results from phototherapy that are as good, if not better, than the improvements those drugs have provided.
So, if you have a condition that’s UVB phototherapy-treatable, the only effect you should expect to get from a tanning system is your skin getting darker. If you want your skin to get better, make sure you and your doctor both understand the difference. Remember that your doctor’s interest is always in helping you to get better, they may simply be unaware that it is no longer effective.
While UVB phototherapy will not be the best solution for everybody, it has to be a better solution for a vast number of patients. Make sure both you and your doctor know this before concluding that phototherapy is not effective for your condition… because it usually is.
Tags: biologicals, narrowband, phototherapy, psoraisis, systemics, tanning, TNF Inhibitors, vitiligo
Posted in Basic information | 45 Comments »
Thursday, September 10th, 2009
A relatively new treatment being adopted by many doctors is the 308nm excimer laser; there are several makers, but they all emit the same kind of coherent light. These treatments are seeing a lot of success with vitiligo patients in particular. As with all other medically accepted therapies for such conditions, this is yet another treatment option. It is not a cure, nor is it necessarily the best treatment option for your condition; just another option that will work for some and do little for others.
The 308nm excimer laser is essentially the same sort of device as the lasers used for treating varicose veins, for removing tattoos and hair removal except these emit a much higher frequency light. Treatments must be administered by trained therapists with a handheld ‘gun’. Eye protection and sheilding is a must for both the patient and the operator for the duration of all treatments.
With UVBioTek nbUVB treatments, a therapist usually operates the system for the patient, but there is none of the "hands-on" treatment required when using the excimer laser. The patient simply disrobes and stands within the light for a few minutes every few days. Eye protection is usually only required of the patient.
The treatment process is roughly the same as with hair & tattoo removal. The laser blasts an area of skin about the size of a quarter, depositing a large amount of energy (millijoules) into the skin. Affected areas are treated one quarter-sized spot at a time, usually overlapping them to make sure the entire area is treated.
The laser emission (blast, zap, flash, take your pick) can definitely be felt; it is described as anywhere from barely perceptible (usually by laser manufacturers) to having a rubber band snapped against the skin (often by therapists) to something akin to getting a tattoo (by many patients). Some laser systems even puff some coolant onto the skin just before the light hits to numb the sensation. Since pain can only be measured by the individual, you have to assume that it’s going to feel somewhere in between the extremes, but you also have to assume that you will be feeling it.
UVBioTek narrowband UVB systems are completely pain-free as long as they are used properly; in this case, "properly" really just means "without burning the skin". UVBioTek treatments feel just like standing close to bright flourescent lights for a few minutes every other day (ideally). It is not hot; most people don’t even work up a sweat. The whole body is treated at once.
A round of treatments usually consist of 10 laser sessions covering the entire affected areas, after which patients are told to expect to remain clear anywhere from 4 to 10 months. How long someone remains "clear" is also a relative concept; it really means how long most patients are willing to put up with the progession of their condition before deciding it’s time to pay for and put up with more laser treatments. On average, most people seem to end up needing a round of treatments about once a year… each and every year.
The amount of time required for a patient to get clear in a UVBioTek phototherapy system depends on the severity of their condition, the frequency of the treatments, and the patient’s opinion of what "clear" is. Most patients get 2-3 sessions per week, and it usually takes a few months to start clearing. Once clear, patients usually need two to four sessions per month to maintain it.
While it generally takes less time to get clear using a laser than with a full-body nbUVB system, treatments will be required in perpetuity. Laser treatments are generally more costly than traditional nbUVB sessions. This is primarily because of the amount of time a technician is needed per patient, but also because the equipment itself is much more expensive. For these reasons, there are no home excimer lasers.
Since conditions like psoriasis and vitiligo are chronic and treatments will be needed for the life of the patient, the most cost-effective way to get clear and stay that way is by using a home nbUVB system. Instead of paying for laser treatments each and every year, a UVBioTek home system is a one-time purchase that generally provides effective treatments for the life of the patient.
Most will agree that it’s a lot easier to use their home system for a few minutes every other morning just before hopping in the shower than it is to get up, get dressed, get to the doctor’s office, wait to be called, get undressed, wait for the technician to get started, wait for them to get finished, get dressed again, pay for the privilege, and then drive on your way. When you consider the cost of all the copayments, the time spent, the cost of transportation, and the hassle of it all, the cost and convenience of a home UVBioTek system is worth its weight in gold.
Fortunately, they aren’t nearly that expensive. 
Be aware that it is okay to be persistent with your doctor. Many are simply unaware of phototherapy. Others are downright opposed to it out of misconceptions and misunderstandings. Narrowband phototherapy is non-invasive, doesn’t require additional medications, has virtually no side-effects, is effective for roughly 80% of all patients with nbUVB-treatable conditions, and has an impressive safety record; after almost a century of medically therapeutic phototherapy usage, no link has ever been established between proper use and an increase in the risk for skin cancer.
Whichever therapy you and your doctor decide is best for you, the sooner you can start, the sooner you will get clear. A home UVBioTek system of your own will cost less than just a few rounds of laser treatments, and probably a lot less than you think. Give us a call at 800-UVBIOTEK (800-882-4683) and find out how we can help you deal with your life-long condition… for life.
Tags: excimer laser, healthcare, home, insurance, laser, narrowband, nbUVB, outpatient, phototherapy, psoraisis, ultraviolet, UVB, UVBioTek, vitiligo
Posted in Basic information | 38 Comments »
Thursday, September 3rd, 2009
Vitamin D is somewhat unique among the vitamins in that it requires exposure to ultraviolet light for the body to properly metabolize. Since people have started spending less and less time outside (and when they are outside they tend to wear sunscreen or stay in the shade), there has been a noticeable increase in Vitamin D deficiencies and related disorders. Insufficient Vitamin D causes problem like ‘rickets’ and aggravates a long list of other health issues.
It was because of this (rickets, specifically) that the US government started mandating that Vitamin D be added to milk and dairy products in the 1930’s, and it virtually eliminated the rickets problem at the time. Vitamin D can also be found in oily fish (cod, salmon, tuna, etc), egg yolk and liver. However, consuming enough dietary Vitamin D does not mean your body has enough of what it needs (the metabolites D2 &/or D3). Also, since it is fat-soluble, there is a chance of consuming too much Vitamin D.
When the body is exposed to ultraviolet light on average for even a few minutes a day, it can convert the dietary Vitamin D to the metabolites that the body can use. There is no chance of overdosing on Vitamin D due to too much exposure to light since the body will only convert as much as it needs and will waste the rest.
The easiest way to make sure that your body has enough Vitamin D is to eat a healthy diet and make sure you expose yourself to UV light in some manner; either outside in sunlight, or by using something like a UVBioTek phototherapy system.
(reference: http://dietary-supplements.info.nih.gov/factsheets/vitamind.asp)
Tags: narrowband, nbUVB, osteoporosis, phototherapy, rickets, ultraviolet, UVB, Vitamin D
Posted in Basic information | 38 Comments »
Thursday, September 3rd, 2009
The use of ‘biological’ medications such as Enbrel, Humira, Raptiva and others have been used to treat psoriasis at a phenomenal rate . In 2008, the entire psoriasis market represented ~$2.5 billion. 55%, or $1.4 billion was spent on biological meds alone.
Aside from the known risks these medications present for cancer and other serious side effects, a large percentage of those patients would likely see better results with phototherapy and without increasing the hazards associated with biological medications. Many patients find that they can get and stay clear with phototherapy alone, without using the expensive and potentially risky biological medications. Sadly, too many dermatologists are prescribing biologicals without ever seeing if phototherapy would be effective first.
The cost of a home narrowband (nbUVB) system is often less than a single month’s worth of biological meds, yet it will provide a time-tested, virtually side-effect free therapy for decades with no additional costs to the patient OR the insurers. Instead, more than half of all the money spent in treating psoriasis is going to the pharmaceutical companies on a regular, routine schedule. This ensures a steady revenue stream, but at the expense of the patient’s best interests.
If just half of the patients who used biological meds in 2008 had instead purchased home nbUVB systems, it could have reduced the overall amount of money spent on psoriasis by a billion dollars annually… while providing more patients with more satisfying, trouble-free results.
(reference: http://www.researchandmarkets.com/research/b8d445/commercial_insight)
Tags: biologicals, cancer, health insurance, home, narrowband, nbUVB, phototherapy, psoraisis, UVB, UVBioTek, vitiligo
Posted in Basic information, News | 9 Comments »
Thursday, August 27th, 2009
It has long been considered that psoriasis has a genetic component. What that means is there might be something in your DNA that makes it more likely that you could develop psoriasis. There are several specific DNA abnormalities that have been linked with various conditions, and it now looks like psoriasis may be added to the list.
A report from the University of Utah has found a genetic variation that "stands alone as a high risk for psoriasis". This genetic variation, called HLA-Cw*0602, appears to be a major factor in developing psoriasis. Just as there are many forms of psoriasis there are almost certainly various other genetic variations that determine how psoriasis might manifest itself in any particular individual, but this is a big step forward.
(this links to the article posted on the University of Utah Health Care web site)
Tags: allele, condition, DNA, genetic, HLA-Cw*0602, psoriasis
Posted in Basic information, News | 8 Comments »
Tuesday, August 18th, 2009
Health insurance has been much in the news recently. The only people who seem particularly happy with insurance in general are those who own insurance companies, those who lobby for insurance companies, and members of Congress. Sadly, over the last few years, what laws do regulate the industry were written by insurance company lawyers; just like in a casino as with insurance companies, the odds are always stacked in favor of "the house". You play the games, you take your chances.
Paying your insurance premiums regularly (i.e. remaining in compliance with your policy) has little to do with how well, or for what you are actually covered. Nobody, at least nobody in the US, can truly consider themselves to be "well insured" until they actually have to use their insurance by filing a claim (i.e. asking the insurance company to comply with your policy)… This means you usually have the procedure BEFORE you ever find out how it is going to cost you, and if you can even afford it. "After-the-fact" reimbursement policies benefit only the insurers, and often end up costing people their jobs, their homes, their families and even their lives. There is no other industry that authorizes actions without letting you know what your costs are going to be; insurance companies do not have to provide "estimates", and anything you are told over the phone is never a promise of a guarantee. The words "insurance", "promise" and "guarantee" used to be closely interlinked… but no longer with health care.
Most people find tremendous frustration when calling their insurance company’s customer service line. When you finally get a person on the line, they ask what they need. If you are talking with "Claims" and you have a question about your benefits, you will get put on hold and transferred to the "Benefits" department; who has no information regarding your claims. Ask the wrong question again, and once again you will find yourself listening to repetitive, annoying music while "waiting for the next representative" in yet another department. If you ask about "Durable Medical Equipment" (the category that UVBioTek narrowband home systems fall into, among many other things), you’ll find yourself transferred yet again to someone who has no information regarding either your claims or your benefits.
There are several reasons for this. One major factor driving all this compartmentalization is a set of regulations called "HIPAA" (Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act). HIPAA was intended to protect the confidentiality of a patient’s medical information. This mandates people to being restricted to only having access to what they need to know to complete their job. So, anyone working in "Claims" is prohibited from seeing your "Benefits" information, and so on. Getting a simple question answered can be maddening, causing many people to simply give up and pay for it themselves or go without the treatment. Going without a medically prescribed treatment, primarily because you cannot afford it is hardly "fully insured", and yet it happens to thousands of people every single day.
Oddly enough, this can be almost as frustrating for the people answering the phones at the insurance companies. They are much like waiters in a restaurant; they don’t have any control over what they present to you; but they have to deal with the person who ordered steak and was served soup instead. One thing is for sure; it can test the patience of almost any person… and was most likely deliberately designed and intended to do exactly that
Not to worry. When you purchase a UVBioTek system, we will deal with your insurance company so you don’t have to. We can tell you what you need, what you need to send to us, and how much you can expect them to cover. We can help remove the stresses associated with getting insurance answers, and work towards getting you approved for the therapeutic needs your doctor has prescribed, at for the largest reimbursement you are entitled to.
Tags: approval, compliance, health insurance, healthcare, HIPAA, insurance denial, medical insurance, narrowband, premiums, UVB, UVBioTek
Posted in Basic information | 21 Comments »
Thursday, August 6th, 2009
We have added a new section to the web site called Success Stories. These describe some of the difficulties with insurance that some people have had to endure in order to get their home UVB systems, and some of the ways they managed to get their systems anyway. The procedure seems simple and straight-forward. It is supposed to go something like this:
- Get diagnosed with a nbUVB treatable condition (psoriasis, vitiligo, eczema, CTCL and the rest)
- Take phototherapy treatments for at least long enough to tell if nbUVB therapy is effective for your condition.
- Get a prescription and letter of medical necessity from your doctor for a home nbUVB system.
- Submit a claim for the home system to your insurance company.
- They verify that the condition and equipment is covered, and pay you their share of the purchase (which is dependent upon your particular policy).
- You order and install your system, which will cover virtually all your phototherapy needs for many decades, if not for life.
Many people are being given the newer "biological" medicines like Enbrel, Humira and Raptiva and are seeing wonderful results with them, despite the many undesirable side effects they can carry. Unfortunately, most patients were never told about, or given the chance to try nbUVB treatments before having such medications prescribed.
Insurance companies regularly and routinely cover the costs of administering such medications, which cost thousands of dollars each and every quarter, while at the same time fighting, denying or only partially reimbursing policy-holders for home nbUVB systems that provide many decades of effective therapy for far less than the cost of a single dose of the "biological" meds. That’s without any injections, without perpetual co-payments, and eventually with no outward signs of your skin condition.
Why they reject a one-time purchase in favor of endless pharmaceutical treatments is anyone’s guess, but it can certainly be argued that it is not in the best interests of the patient to skip past phototherapy and go right into the heavy meds. Most insurance policies specify that phototherapy should be tried before biologicals, but this is frequently ignored.
Don’t put up, speak up if your doctor wants to try the "latest & greatest" medications on you before even giving the "oldest & greatest" therapy a chance; nbUVB phototherapy. While the biologicals have been around for several years, clinical phototherapy has been around for almost a century… and people have been using natural nbUVB therapy at the Dead Sea for millennia.
A simple change in such a policy would literally save insurance companies tens of thousands of dollars, per patient, each and every year. Nobody can explain why they insist on paying more.
If you have a story you’d like to share about your experiences in dealing with your condition or your insurance and getting a home system, we’d love to include them in our new section and share them for the education of others.
Tags: biologicals, home, insurance, medical neccesity, nbUVB, Success stories
Posted in Basic information | 22 Comments »
Tuesday, August 4th, 2009
Short answer: Not likely.
The American Academy of Dematology recently declared UV light to be a carcinogen. That means they believe that exposure to UV light can lead to an increased risk for cancer. However, this does not mean you will get cancer if you are exposed to UV light. Like so many things, UV light has the potential to increase your risk for cancer when you get more than your skin is capable of handling; this usually results in sunburns of varying degrees of severity.
The more often you get sunburned, and the worse those sunburns are, the greater your risk for skin cancer becomes. Does that mean if you avoid UV light you will not get cancer? Far from it. In fact, there are all kinds of problems that are caused by not getting enough UV light and there are many other things that are known to elevate your cancer risk. The secret is, as with so many things, moderation. Virtually all medications are toxic, if taken in large enough doses. Determining the proper dosage is always a balance between figuring out how much is too much and how much is not enough. If you properly follow the directions, you will receive the benefits. Phototherapy is no different than any other medication in this regard.
When the body is exposed to UV light (like anytime you’re in sunlight) it causes several things to happen. Right away it allows and is required for the body to properly process Vitamin D, which is directly related to bone strength and general health. The next thing that happens is the skin cells near the surface (the ones being most exposed) get irritated by the light and call for something known as "melanin". Melanin is what gives our skin color. The condition that causes a complete lack of melanin is commonly known as "albinism".
The nucleus of our cells contains DNA. If our DNA gets damaged, it can cause unpredictable effects. Usually such damage just causes the cell to die off and be replaced; in fact, this happens all the time. But every so often, and for reasons that nobody fully understands, such cells can become cancerous. In order to protect the nucleus, melanin is delivered to the exposed skin cells and collects above the cell’s nucleus to shield it from the the UV light – just like sunglasses.
The production of melanin in response to UV exposure is a natural, normal, protective process. Tanning does for our body what the ozone layer does for the planet. It shields us from much of the UV light. When you develop a tan, your skin is responding properly to its environment. However, if you get too much UV too quickly, you end up actually killing skin cells; we experience this as a sunburn. Unlike the tan response, a sunburn is not a protective reaction. Instead, it is simply the body’s response to cellular damage.
The proper use of UVB phototherapy calls for regular exposure to slightly less UV than what would cause you to burn. If you are properly following the protocol, you will avoid getting burned.
What that all comes down to is that no link has ever been established between the proper use of UVB phototherapy and an increase in the risk for skin cancer, and that’s over nearly a century of therapeutic usage. It does not stress the internal organs the way many internal medications frequenty do. There is no safer form of therapy.
So the problem does not really appear to be with UV light exposure, but with UV light OVER-exposure. That can subsequently lead to a burn, which can leads to cellular damage, which can lead to cancer. The solution, as with so many things in life, is not to avoid all UV light, but simply to avoid getting burned. That can easily be done by following the standard treatment protocol developed by the National Psoriasis Foundation.
Tags: burn, cancer, carcinogenic, DNA, exposure, melanin, narrowband, nbUVB, phototherapy, ultraviolet, UVB, UVBioTek
Posted in Basic information | 103 Comments »
Tuesday, August 4th, 2009
Phototherapy refers to medically therapeutic exposure to light, or using light to treat medical problem. Ultraviolet (UV) light is most frequently used, and it is broken down into three band-ranges. the A range (the "colors" that generate suntans; ~320-400 nm), the B range (the "colors" that can cause sunburns; ~290-320 nm), and the C range (the "colors" that are lethal to most living things; ~100-250 nm); these bands are also known as UVA, UVB and UVC.
While UVC lights are used in a variety of air & water purification and sterilization systems, there are currently no therapeutic uses for UVC light; it is simply too intense.
UVA lamps are most commonly used in tanning systems, but they are also used medicinally for what’s called "PUVA" therapy. For decades, PUVA was the only effective treatment for many people.
Too much UVB light and you’ll quickly get a sunburn, but when carefully administered it can be the solution for millions of people suffering with psoriasis, along with a long list of other conditions.
Within the UVB range, there is a very specific frequency range that appears to be what most skin problems are thirsty for; this is called "Narrowband UVB" (nbUVB; 311-313 nm) and it is effective for roughly 80% of all applicable patients. Its only side effects are sunburns (if you over-do it) and cataracts (if you don’t shield your eyes). While a history of moderate to severe sunburns has been linked to an increased risk for certain skin cancers, the proper use of UVB light has never been shown to increase the risk for skin cancer; and that’s with almost a century of medical use.
Phototherapy, specifically nbUVB, is most often used to treat conditions like psoriasis, vitiligo and eczema. Less common problems that respond well to nbUVB are certain types of dermatitis, prurigo, porphyria, pruritis, a form of cancer usually called CTCL (Cutaneous T-Cell Lymphoma). And phototherapy is safe enough to be used with pregnant women and children.
The basic goal behind nbUVB therapy is determining how much light exposure causes your skin to burn by slowly increasing your exposure amounts untill your skin begins to burn. You take treatments that are just below that amount every other day (at most) until you are clear again following the basic protocol developed by the National Psoriasis Foundation.
Tags: cancer, CTCL, narrowband, phototherapy, porphyria, pruritis, psoraisis, UVB, vitiligo
Posted in Basic information | 13 Comments »
Tuesday, August 4th, 2009
Welcome to "UVBioTek / Talk". The sooner you can start treating most skin problems, the better off you’ll be… so think "Tek/Talk, Tek/Talk, Tek/Talk"…
UVBioTek systems are the best phototherapy units available at any price. We use steel where others use plastic, sheets of Acrylic where others use wire gratings, and we blend into any room where others stand out for all to see. Our systems can last a user their entire lifetime, and are built with that in mind. All UVBioTek systems are made in the USA. We only make medical phototherapy systems, and all systems require a doctor’s prescription to purchase.
As we see it, anything that’s good for phototherapy is good for UVBioTek. Many doctors have been told to fear it, most insurance companies do all they can to refuse it, and too many patients are simply unaware of it; I hope to address all those fears and concerns while hopefully increasing patient awareness of phototherapy in general, and Narrowband UVB (nbUVB) in particular. Thanks for checking out our blog. I hope you find it informative and (hopefully) somewhat entertaining.
Tags: UVBioTek phototherapy narrowband uvb introduction
Posted in Basic information | 6 Comments »
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