[Clofibrate treatment of psoriasis with hypertriglycemia--clinical, histological and laboratory analysis]

Abstract

Abnormalities of triglyceride (TG) metabolism are considered to play an important role in pathogenesis of psoriasis. Two psoriatic patients with hypertriglycemia were treated with 750 mg of oral Clofibrate daily. While they were treated, both patients showed improvement of psoriasis. Upon cessation of treatment the lesions returned. During the treatment, levels of serum TG, apolipoprotein C-III (apo C-III), and apo E were reduced significantly. The analysis of serum fatty acids revealed a change in the level of linoleic acid. The serum linoleic acid level, which had been low in both cases before the treatment, increased in one case and decreased in other during the treatment. In the biopsy specimen from the post-treatment plaque, both capillary proliferation and endothelial swelling in the dermis were less prominent. There was a moderate reduction in the number of lymphocytic cells, and an increase in that of histiocytic cells. Clofibrate treatment improved TG metabolism and the histological and clinical findings in the psoriatic lesion.