Scleredema treated with broad-band ultraviolet A phototherapy plus colchicine.

Scleredema is an uncommon condition characterized by induration of skin. The pathogenesis is not known, although the increased expression of collagen-producing fibroblasts in the skin has been demonstrated. Scleredema has been difficult to treat with scattered reports of success with bath psoralen plus ultraviolet A (PUVA), cream PUVA, UVA1 and others. The use of low-dose broad-band UVA phototherapy was found to be effective in the treatment of morphea. Colchicine has been shown to interfere with collagen synthesis and is used successfully in scleroderma. We report the first case of scleredema that improved markedly with low-dose broad-band UVA plus colchicine treatment.