Effects of emollients on ultraviolet-radiation-induced erythema of the skin.

Several commonly used emollients were studied as to their effectiveness in absorbing and filtering erythema-causing ultraviolet radiation in the 280 to 315 nm range (UVB). Planter's Peanut Oil (Standard Brands) and Mazola Corn Oil (Best Foods Inc) had no effect; Alpha Keri Bath Oil (Westwood Pharmaceuticals), mineral oil, and Johnson's Baby Oil (Johnson & Johnson Co) had minimal effects. Vaseline Petroleum Jelly (Chesebrough-Ponds Inc), petrolatum, and hydrophilic ointment substantially reduced the erythema that was induced by exposure to low doses of UVB radiation. Therefore, these emollients may interfere with the therapeutic effects of the ultraviolet radiation component of the Goeckerman treatment when it is administered in low doses to patients with psoriasis.