Paper-tape occlusion of anthralin paste. A new outpatient therapy for psoriasis.

We present a new method for the outpatient use of anthralin paste in the treatment of psoriasis. By instructing the patient to cover the nightly paste application with semipermeable paper tape, we devised a practical and easy method for home therapy. In a study of 12 patients with unresponsive plaque-type psoriasis, six responded with 90% or better clearing of treated sites and two with 70% clearing, compared with symmetrical control sites. Four patients showed no substantial improvement. The average duration of therapy was 11 weeks. A three-month reevaluation of the conditions of these patients disclosed that improvement had been substantially maintained. Despite the tape occlusion, irritation was a manageable problem, except in three patients who had to halt therapy. Although less effective than conventional inpatient anthralin paste regimens, this method is more cost-effective for those with limited plaque disease.