Predicting remission of psoriasis after phototherapy

ISRCTN ISRCTN51510007
DOI https://doi.org/10.1186/ISRCTN51510007
Secondary identifying numbers 15935
Submission date
01/05/2014
Registration date
01/05/2014
Last edited
10/05/2021
Recruitment status
No longer recruiting
Overall study status
Completed
Condition category
Skin and Connective Tissue Diseases
Prospectively registered
Protocol
Statistical analysis plan
Results
Individual participant data

Plain English summary of protocol

Background and study aims
Psoriasis is a skin condition that causes red, flaky, crusty patches of skin covered with silvery scales. It is a long-term, disabling condition that affects around 2% of the UK population. UVB (ultraviolet B) light is one of the few treatments which can clear psoriasis completely. Some patients then stay clear for months or even years. The most commonly used form of UVB treatment is narrowband UVB (NbUVB), which is effective in approximately 70% of patients. Many patients completing a course are ‘almost clear’ on discharge (often with just 1 or 2 small areas remaining), but clinical observation suggests that the psoriasis in these patients may come back quicker than in patients who clear completely. Understanding whether complete clearance of psoriasis is important for prolonged remission will inform effective management of psoriasis patients’ potentially providing longer disease remission, and with fewer treatment courses required overall. This may reduce the need for systemic treatment, lead to improved safety, and provide insights into mechanism of remission and relapse. The aim of this study is to find out whether patients whose psoriasis is 100% clear following a course of narrowband UVB have a longer duration of remission than those whose psoriasis was almost clear/didn’t clear.

Who can participate?
Adults who have long-term psoriasis and have been prescribed narrowband UVB treatment.

What does the study involve?
Patients who agree to participate attend three times weekly for phototherapy treatment (as for routine treatment). Before starting the course and at the end of the treatment they are asked to provide a blood sample, fill out a questionnaire (DLQI) and have their skin severity score (PASI) measured by nursing staff. The latter is also performed weekly when the patients attend for routine treatment. After 12-15 phototherapy treatments, patients with localised resistant plaques will be allocated at random to receive routine NbUVB or routine NbUVB plus 308nm Excimer treatment to these “resistant” plaques.

What are the possible benefits and risks of participating?
Benefits of participating include possibility of getting greater extent of clearance. Risks of participating are the same as for routine UVB treatment, and include erythema/ burning.

Where is the study run from?
Royal Victoria Infirmary (UK)

When is the study starting and how long is it expected to run for?
January 2013 to October 2016

Who is funding the study?
British Skin Foundation (UK)

Who is the main contact?
Dr Stamatina Verykiou
stamatina.verykiou@nuth.nhs.uk

Contact information

Dr Stamatina Verykiou
Scientific

County Durham and Darlington NHS Foundation Trust
North Road
Durham
DH1 5TW
United Kingdom

Phone +44 (0)1325 364271
Email stamatina.verykiou@nuth.nhs.uk

Study information

Study designBoth; Interventional and Observational; Design type: Not specified, Treatment, Qualitative
Primary study designInterventional
Secondary study designNon randomised controlled trial
Study setting(s)Other
Study typeTreatment
Participant information sheet Not available in web format, please use the contact details to request a patient information sheet
Scientific titleIs the duration of remission of psoriasis increased after complete clearance versus 'almost complete' clearance following narrowband UVB phototherapy?
Study acronymPROPAP
Study objectivesPatients whose psoriasis is 100% clear following a course of narrowband UVB have a longer duration of remission than those whose psoriasis was almost clear/didn’t clear.
Ethics approval(s)North East - Newcastle & North Tyneside 1 Research Ethics Committee, 09/01/2014, ref: 13/NE/0357
Health condition(s) or problem(s) studiedTopic: Dermatology; Subtopic: Skin (all Subtopics); Disease: Dermatology
InterventionPatients will be given written information about the study and asked to give informed consent to participate. Patients will be given at least 48 hours to decide if they wish to participate. If they agree to take part demographic data will be collected, and the patients PASI and BMI recorded prior to the start of treatment. Demographic data will include the age that the patient first developed psoriasis, length of current episode/ flare, plaque size and presence of scalp involvement. We will also record any topical treatment that the patient has been using in the fortnight leading up to phototherapy. Patients will be asked to give a blood test prior to treatment (for CRP and vitamin D levels), and at the end of treatment period. Dermatology life quality index (DLQI) will be measured before treatment and after the treatment is complete.

Patients will then begin their routine NbUVB (narrow band ultraviolet B) treatment as per the normal protocol; weekly PASI scores will be recorded throughout treatment to assess their progress. After 15 treatments, patients still receiving treatment will be randomised to receive targeted narrowband UVB (308 Excimer Lamp) to up to 5 of the most treatment resistant plaques (usually the thickest plaques), or to be observed (see flow diagram below). Randomisation will be performed using SealedEnvelope.com (1:1). In our previous study 28% of patients were no longer having UVB treatment after 5 weeks (15 treatments), therefore we expect to have approximately 70% of recruited patients reaching 16 treatments. All patients will continue with their routine UVB until the end of the course (maximum of 30 treatments).10

At the end of the treatment period all patients will have their psoriasis area and severity (PASI) scores measured and will be given a diary to monitor any recurrence of psoriasis and any potential triggers for this (e.g sore throat, new medication etc). Patients will be telephoned on a monthly basis to ask about recurrence of psoriasis (we will text patients a reminder 24 hours before the phone call to confirm their telephone appointment). If this has been noted by the patient they will be assessed and their PASI measured. If they have a PASI of at least 50% of their pre-treatment level this will be defined as a relapse. If it is less than 50%, patients will be followed up on a monthly basis until relapse has occurred. It is expected that most patients will have relapsed within 12 months of treatment completion, although one study has had patients in remission for up to 22 months.1

Where possible all PASI scores will be measured by the same person, and when cover is required, a colleague experienced in measuring PASI scores will be asked to score the patient. Photographs will be taken of identified plaques of psoriasis before and after the 308nm Excimer Lamp treatment, as per standard protocol.

The expected study end date will be 2 years after the study begins. However as recruitment may take up to 1 year it is possible that we may need to extend the study by 6 months to allow for complete follow up of all patients.
Intervention typeOther
Primary outcome measureDuration of remission achieved in psoriasis patients following a course of Narrowband UVB (NbUVB) ismeasured through monthly telephone calls after completion of treatment until study end. Patients are recalled and undergo a skin evaluation if psoriasis has flared.When >50% of the original PASI score is reached, the patients involvement in the study is complete.
Secondary outcome measures1. Duration of remission achieved in patients who achieve “complete” clearance of psoriasis versus those who achieve “almost complete” clearance. Complete clearance was defined as 100%, and almost complete as 75-99% clear.
2. Practicality and effectiveness of the 308nm Excimer lamp in clearing more ‘resistant’ plaques alongside a standard course of NbUVB by nurse questionnaire
Overall study start date24/01/2013
Completion date31/10/2016

Eligibility

Participant type(s)Patient
Age groupAdult
Lower age limit18 Years
SexBoth
Target number of participantsPlanned Sample Size: 100; UK Sample Size: 100
Total final enrolment100
Key inclusion criteria1. Age of 18 years or older
2. Gives written informed consent to the study
3. Has chronic plaque psoriasis and has been routinely prescribed narrowband UVB
Key exclusion criteria1. Pregnancy
2. Patients on systemic treatment for psoriasis within the past 3 months
3. Patients with significant UV exposure over the past 1 month (sunny holidays /sunbeds etc)
4. Patients with a previous history of malignant skin cancer
5. Non-English speaking patients
Date of first enrolment24/04/2014
Date of final enrolment06/03/2015

Locations

Countries of recruitment

  • England
  • United Kingdom

Study participating centre

Royal Victoria Infirmary
Queen Victoria Road
Newcastle-upon-Tyne
NE1 4LP
United Kingdom

Sponsor information

Newcastle upon Tyne Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust (UK)
Hospital/treatment centre

Leazes Wing
Royal Victoria Infirmary
Queen Victoria Road
Newcastle Upon Tyne
NE1 4LP
England
United Kingdom

ROR logo "ROR" https://ror.org/05p40t847

Funders

Funder type

Charity

British Skin Foundation
Private sector organisation / Trusts, charities, foundations (both public and private)
Alternative name(s)
BSF
Location
United Kingdom

Results and Publications

Intention to publish date31/03/2018
Individual participant data (IPD) Intention to shareNo
IPD sharing plan summaryNot provided at time of registration
Publication and dissemination planAbstracts submitted to the British Association of Dermatologists (meeting July 2017). Planned publication in a high impact peer reviewed journal in approximately March 2018.
IPD sharing planThe datasets generated during and/or analysed during the current study are/will be available upon request from Sophie.weatherhead@nuth.nhs.uk

Study outputs

Output type Details Date created Date added Peer reviewed? Patient-facing?
Abstract results 01/07/2017 10/05/2021 No No
HRA research summary 28/06/2023 No No

Editorial Notes

10/05/2021: The following changes have been made:
1. Publication reference added.
2. The final enrolment number has been added from the reference.
3. The trial acronym has been added.
31/01/2018: Internal review.
20/02/2017: The following changes have been made to the record:
1. The overall trial dates have been updated from 16/04/2014 - 01/02/2015 to 24/01/2013 - 31/10/2017 and the recuritment dates have been updated from 16/04/2014 - 01/02/2015 to 24/04/2014 - 06/03/2015
2. The hypothesis, interventions, outcome measures, trial participating centre, plain English summary, publication and dissemination plan and IPD sharing plan have been added.