Background: Thai herbal formulations have been used traditionally in Thailand for the treatment of psoriasis. However, there is still a lack of scientific data supporting the effects of Thai herbal formulations in psoriasis treatment.
Objectives: This study aimed to demonstrate the therapeutic effects of Thai herbal formulations for the treatment of erythrodermic psoriasis.
Materials and methods: All Thai herbal formulations (haematic tonic, lymphatic treatment, skin treatment) were obtained from a traditional Thai medicine doctor, Mr. Somporn Chanwanitsakul. The effects of Thai herbal formulations in a patient with erythrodermic psoriasis were assessed for four weeks. Primary outcome, psoriasis area and severity index (PASI) and secondary outcome, safety data and dermatology life quality index (DLQI) measurements were evaluated at baseline and four weeks. Then, in vitro biological activities (antioxidant, anti-microbial, cytotoxic effects, and anti-inflammatory) of Thai herbal formulations were determined to promote the therapeutic effects.
Results: Thai herbal formulations were safe and effective in the treatment of erythrodermic psoriasis and had a modest positive impact on the DQLI of the patient. In addition, in vitro studies have shown that all Thai herbal formulations revealed remarkable anti-oxidant and anti-inflammatory potential to support their therapeutic activities. However, the Thai herbal formulations possessed weak intrinsic antibacterial activities against all tested bacterial strains (MIC and MBC E. coli, S. aureus, S. pyogenes, P. aeruginosa: > 256 µg/ml).
Conclusion: The findings indicated that successful treatment of erythrodermic psoriasis with Thai herbal formulations was involved in their anti-oxidant and anti-inflammatory activities. They could be considered as an alternative treatment for refractory erythrodermic psoriasis.
Keywords: Erythrodermic psoriasis; Psoriasis; Thai herbal formulation.
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