Calcipotriol

Calcipotriol is often the first choice for treating psoriasis. It includes a vitamin D analogue that helps lessen scales and rough areas on your skin.

Psoriasis is a long-term inflammatory condition that impacts about 60 million people globally. The most common symptom is dry, itchy patches on the skin. While there's no cure, treatment typically aims to manage your symptoms rather than eliminate them completely.

Calcipotriol is a man-made version of vitamin D, known as an analogue. Unlike vitamin D supplements that boost your vitamin D levels, calcipotriol works in a different way. It attaches to your vitamin D receptors to slow down the production of skin cells, especially keratinocytes, which are produced in excess in psoriasis. Keratinocytes cause scaly, dry skin, so by controlling their production, the thick scales are lessened.

It also helps manage your immune system to lessen swelling and inflammation, which are common symptoms of psoriasis.

Calcipotriol is an effective ingredient for treating psoriasis and is included in various treatments and forms. It is most often found in topical ointments at a concentration of 0.005% (50 micrograms per gram). There's also a scalp solution available with the same concentration of calcipotriol, which is mainly used for scalp psoriasis because it's easy to apply to your head.

You can also find it combined with betamethasone dipropionate, a steroid. This combination is often the first treatment your doctors or clinicians suggest for psoriasis. Each ingredient targets different problems: calcipotriol helps reduce scaling, while the steroid works to decrease swelling, itching, and redness.

Certainly! Calcipotriol is the generic form of Dovonex. They both have the same ingredients in the same concentration and work just as well as each other. The differences lie in the packaging, who makes them, and the cost. It's your choice which one to go for, but generally, the generic option tends to be less expensive.

Calcipotriol is a vitamin D-based treatment used for psoriasis. It works by reducing the production of keratin, which leads to scaling and swelling. Another option for treating psoriasis is using steroids, such as betamethasone valerate. Steroids help to ease symptoms like swelling, redness, and itching.

If you have scalp psoriasis, your treatment will be a bit different. You may still use calcipotriol and steroids, but these will probably come as a shampoo or a scalp solution. You might also be advised to use Sebco and Capasal, which are salicylic acid and tar shampoos that help to reduce and remove scales and flakes from your scalp.

A meta-analysis looking at over 62 trials assessed how well calcipotriol works for psoriasis. The findings showed that calcipotriol was more effective than a placebo in both adults and children.

When compared to topical corticosteroids, which are also regarded as first-choice treatments for psoriasis, both were found to be equally effective in improving the condition. However, after eight weeks, corticosteroids showed better improvements, although more people discontinued their use due to side effects.

The biggest improvements were seen when corticosteroid and calcipotriol treatments were used together.

Calcipotriol is only available with a prescription to ensure it's safe and appropriate for you. If you're interested in getting Calcipotriol, you'll need to answer a few questions and select it from the recommended treatment options. Our clinicians will review your answers and approve the treatment if they believe it's suitable for you.