What does “narrowband UVB” mean?
Narrowband UVB lamps concentrate their output in a narrow slice of ultraviolet light, typically peaking around 311 nanometres, instead of putting out the whole UVB range. Think of it like a flashlight with a colored filter over the lens. The filter blocks most wavelengths and lets through mostly the one band that helps your skin. Evidence This statement has a dated source and is waiting for a clinician's sign-off. Pending clinical review
Why this matters
That narrow tuning is the whole point. Lamps built this way concentrate on the band guidelines say has useful effects for several skin diseases, rather than spraying the full UVB range at you.
Questions for your clinician
- Which kind of phototherapy are you considering for me?Saving keeps this on your device and needs JavaScript, which is off in this browser.
- Why does that kind fit the condition we are treating?Saving keeps this on your device and needs JavaScript, which is off in this browser.
One shared light-therapy path
One path, five decisions - taken in any order.
These steps stay in one shared guide. You can begin with the decision in front of you, move back when life changes, pause, or choose not to treat.
You picked vitiligo. Use this shared path for the practical light-therapy steps, then bring condition-specific questions back to your vitiligo care team.
You picked psoriasis. Use this shared path for the practical light-therapy steps, then bring condition-specific questions back to your psoriasis care team.
- DecideSee where light therapy fitsCompare home, clinic, pausing, and other paths.
- FundUnderstand the access pathStart with coverage, paperwork, and your real costs.
- AcquireCompare device factsReview form, support, and current source information.
- Set upPrepare the spaceCheck delivery, the current manual, and household needs.
- UseKeep safety closeFollow your care plan and know what to bring back to your team.
- SustainPlan for real lifeKeep questions about reactions, breaks, and maintenance together.
- Resell or retireClose ownership carefullyCheck transfer, support, broken-lamp, and disposal questions.
Ultraviolet light map
The names describe different parts or uses of ultraviolet light.
- Sunlight
- Contains both UVA and UVB at the skin’s surface.
- Narrowband UVB
- Uses a selected narrow part of UVB in a medical treatment plan.
- PUVA
- Pairs UVA with a light-sensitizing medicine called psoralen.
- Excimer
- Targets selected areas with a focused form of UVB rather than whole-body exposure.
How is it different from sunlight, tanning light, PUVA, or excimer treatment?
Sunlight, tanning devices, broadband UVB, narrowband UVB, PUVA, and excimer treatment are not interchangeable, even though they’re all “UV light.” Medical phototherapy selects and controls one particular light source for a particular reason. Evidence Evidence This statement has a dated source and is waiting for a clinician's sign-off. Pending clinical review
- Broadband UVB uses a wider part of the UVB range.
- Narrowband UVB uses a selected narrow part of UVB.
- PUVA pairs UVA with a light-sensitizing medicine called psoralen.
- Excimer treatment directs focused UVB to selected areas.
Why this matters
Guidelines separate these options because the light used, the area treated, the safety checks, and the clinical purpose all differ. A tanning bed is not a substitute for prescribed phototherapy - it isn’t tuned or dosed the same way.
Questions for your clinician
- Why are you considering this light source instead of another one?Saving keeps this on your device and needs JavaScript, which is off in this browser.
- Would treatment cover selected areas or a wider area?Saving keeps this on your device and needs JavaScript, which is off in this browser.
Which skin conditions can narrowband UVB treat?
Narrowband UVB treats several skin conditions, including vitiligo and psoriasis, and guidelines cover more beyond those two - each with its own recommendation and evidence strength. Evidence Evidence This statement has a dated source and is waiting for a clinician's sign-off. Pending clinical review
- Psoriasis, eczema, and vitiligo
- Some light-sensitive skin conditions
- Selected forms of cutaneous T-cell lymphoma
- Selected cases of lichen planus, localized scleroderma, itch, and other inflammatory skin diseases
Why this matters
The 2022 British guideline I’m drawing from reviews narrowband UVB across a broad group of skin diseases, and how strongly it’s recommended changes by condition.
Questions for your clinician
- How strong is the evidence for narrowband UVB for my exact diagnosis?Saving keeps this on your device and needs JavaScript, which is off in this browser.
- Where does it fit among my other options?Saving keeps this on your device and needs JavaScript, which is off in this browser.
Why might narrowband UVB be considered?
Whether narrowband UVB is worth considering for you depends on your diagnosis, your treatment goal, and which body areas are affected. It also depends on what you’ve already tried, your safety context, and how much burden you can take on. Evidence This statement has a dated source and is waiting for a clinician's sign-off. Pending clinical review
Why this matters
It’s an established phototherapy option for several diseases. Choosing home versus clinic treatment changes your travel, oversight, setup, privacy, cost, and support needs - it’s not just a paperwork detail.
Questions for your clinician
- What problem are we trying to address with narrowband UVB?Saving keeps this on your device and needs JavaScript, which is off in this browser.
- What would make its burden worthwhile for me?Saving keeps this on your device and needs JavaScript, which is off in this browser.
Can narrowband UVB cause sunburn or other side effects?
Yes. Narrowband UVB can cause erythema - redness or a sunburn-type reaction. If it turns into pain or blistering, that needs prompt instructions from your treating team, not a guess. Evidence Evidence This statement has a dated source and is waiting for a clinician's sign-off. Pending clinical review
Why this matters
Redness is the most commonly reported short-term effect. Itching, dry skin, and cold sores coming back can happen too. Eye protection and a review of your other medicines are part of doing this safely.
Questions for your clinician
- Which changes mean I should pause and contact you?Saving keeps this on your device and needs JavaScript, which is off in this browser.
- Who should I contact after hours about a reaction?Saving keeps this on your device and needs JavaScript, which is off in this browser.
What can this page not decide for me?
Narrowband UVB is clinician-directed care. I can’t tell you from here whether it’s right for you, or hand you a schedule, a device setting, or a treatment change. Evidence This statement has a dated source and is waiting for a clinician's sign-off. Pending clinical review
Why this matters
A decision that actually works names your diagnosis, goal, body areas, other treatments, safety checks, care setting, follow-up, and contact plan. The exact instructions for your device matter too.
Questions for your clinician
- What result would we look for, and when would we review the plan?Saving keeps this on your device and needs JavaScript, which is off in this browser.
- What could make narrowband UVB a poor fit for me?Saving keeps this on your device and needs JavaScript, which is off in this browser.
Evidence and update context
This optional layer shows the evidence boundary reviewed for this page as of 2026-08-21.
- What this evidence supports
- That narrow tuning is the whole point. Lamps built this way concentrate on the band guidelines say has useful effects for several skin diseases, rather than spraying the full UVB range at you.
- What it does not establish
- Every lamp and manufacturer tunes that band a little differently, and the wavelength name alone doesn’t hand you a safe plan. Your clinician still has to set up the device and the plan around you.
Pending clinical review
This statement has a dated source and is waiting for a clinician's sign-off.
Pending clinical review
This statement has a dated source and is waiting for a clinician's sign-off.
Pending clinical review
This statement has a dated source and is waiting for a clinician's sign-off.
Pending clinical review
This statement has a dated source and is waiting for a clinician's sign-off.
Pending clinical review
This statement has a dated source and is waiting for a clinician's sign-off.
Pending clinical review
This statement has a dated source and is waiting for a clinician's sign-off.
Applicability check
Who was studied?
These fields show what the cited evidence reports about the people and body sites behind outcome or safety claims. “Not reported” means the reviewed source omitted the field; “Pending exact source review” means SteadySkin has not made that determination yet.
Narrowband UVB can cause erythema, including painful sunburn-type reactions, and requires a defined reaction and contact plan.
- Age range
- Not reported
- Condition subtype
- Not reported
- Severity or extent
- Not reported
- Sample size
- Not reported
- Geography and care setting
- Not reported
- Skin tone or phototype
- Not reported
- Race
- Not reported
- Ethnicity
- Not reported
- Body sites
- Not reported
What that means for this page: The cited guidance establishes a general safety boundary. It does not quantify risk or establish that every age, condition, care setting, skin tone, or body site is represented.
Evidence behind this page
Sources
Each evidence badge opens the source and its limits. The full list stays available here.
- British Journal of Dermatology (Goulden V, et al.)Guideline · Regulatory / guideline, tier 1Independent source
- Published
- SteadySkin last checked
What this source can and cannot tell you
What this source supports
It supports that traditional NB-UVB fluorescent lamps emit a narrow UVB band peaking around 311 nanometres. It backs wearing UV-protective goggles and keeping UV scatter off people nearby. It records the consent form naming goggles and the same clothing at each session. It also covers clinical uses, how it compares with other light treatments, safety limits including sunburn-type reactions, and the added safeguards home phototherapy needs.
What it does not support
It does not provide a personal treatment plan, approve a particular home setup, or replace the instructions for your own device. SteadySkin never reproduces its treatment schedules.
Claim-specific review for this source is still in progress. Only the source-level evidence and limits are shown here.
- British Association of DermatologistsPatient education · Patient education, tier 5Independent source
- Published
- SteadySkin last checked
What this source can and cannot tell you
What this source supports
It supports a plain-language explanation that NB-UVB uses a small part of the UVB spectrum, is used for conditions including psoriasis, eczema, and vitiligo, and is distinct from sunlight or a sunbed. It also supports what a unit asks of its own patients during a course. It asks them not to sunbathe or use a sunbed for the whole of it, and to reduce sun exposure so that skin does not burn. It asks them to report a medicine, a cream, or newly exposed skin such as a haircut. It asks them to arrive without perfume, deodorant, aftershave or other cosmetics, because some of those raise light sensitivity and can leave patchy discolouration for months. It carries the unit’s own account of repeated courses. It states that the full risk of narrowband UVB is not known, and that roughly one in ten people in the UK develop skin cancer. It states that a review becomes usual practice past a stated number of treatments, and that many treatments can bring the wrinkling and discolouration of photoageing.
What it does not support
It is patient education, not primary evidence for an efficacy claim. Its printed next review date was June 2025 and it has not been updated since June 2022. It is therefore used only for what it plainly states, and never as current guidance. It is written for a UK hospital unit whose nurses examine skin at every visit, so it sets no rule for a device used at home. Its numbers stay in this record rather than in the copy. Those are the sun protection factor and star rating it names, the hours it names, the treatment count that triggers a review, and the multiple by which it estimates lifetime risk. That multiple is stated there as an assumption that narrowband UVB behaves like sunlight, not as a measurement.
Claim-specific review for this source is still in progress. Only the source-level evidence and limits are shown here.