New Peer-Reviewed Publication Confirms Unprecedented Response Rates for STRATA’s Excimer Laser Combined with JAK Inhibitors in Pediatric Vitiligo
Rhea-AI Summary
STRATA Skin Sciences (NASDAQ:SSKN) reported peer-reviewed results from a multicenter randomized trial in pediatric progressive vitiligo showing its 308-nm XTRAC excimer laser plus oral JAK inhibitors achieved an 85.5% overall response rate vs 53.8% with tacrolimus plus XTRAC, with only mild-to-moderate, manageable adverse events.
Face/neck response reached 97.3%, and 33 lesions achieved >95% repigmentation by week 48. STRATA is building patent protection for excimer–systemic combinations and expects AMA CPT code changes effective January 1, 2027 to triple the addressable patient population for XTRAC across inflammatory and autoimmune skin diseases.
AI-generated analysis. Not financial advice.
Positive
- JAK inhibitor + XTRAC group showed 85.5% response vs 53.8% control (P<.001)
- Face/neck response 97.3% in Group A, with 64.9% significantly effective rate
- 33 lesions achieved >95% repigmentation at week 48 vs 3 in control arm
- Mixed-effects model showed 21.7% higher repigmentation rate for combination therapy
- All adverse events mild to moderate and fully resolved; no TB or hepatitis B/C
- Quality of life improvements significantly greater by week 48 (P<.001)
- Expanding patent portfolio around XTRAC plus JAK inhibitors and biologic drugs
- CPT code updates effective Jan 1, 2027 expand coverage to more conditions
- Over 75% of non-psoriasis XTRAC patients currently covered by insurance
- Code expansion expected to effectively triple XTRAC addressable patient population
Negative
- None.
News Market Reaction – SSKN
On the day this news was published, SSKN declined NaN%, reflecting a moderate negative market reaction.
Data tracked by StockTitan Argus on the day of publication.
Key Figures
Market Reality Check
Peers on Argus
SSKN is down 6.23% while peers are mixed: BMRA (-4.13%), HSCS (-7.81%), LFWD (+0.15%), PAVM (+2.19%), RSLS (+29.8%). Momentum scanner shows HSCS and TNON both moving up, highlighting stock‑specific pressure on SSKN despite generally mixed sector action.
Historical Context
| Date | Event | Sentiment | Move | Catalyst |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Feb 19 | Nasdaq delisting | Negative | +8.2% | Company confirmed Nasdaq delisting and plan to terminate SEC reporting. |
| Feb 18 | Device placement | Positive | -40.0% | Johns Hopkins added XTRAC 308 nm excimer laser to clinical offerings. |
| Feb 17 | Meta-analysis data | Positive | -8.3% | Meta-analysis confirmed substantial PASI improvements with 308 nm excimer therapy. |
| Dec 09 | Commercial update | Positive | +6.5% | Showcased XTRAC and TheraclearX and reported early adoption in Mexico. |
Recent positive commercial and clinical news has often seen negative or volatile price reactions.
Over the last six months, STRATA has combined operational challenges with positive clinical and commercial milestones. A February 2026 delisting decision and plans to “go dark” contrasted with news of Johns Hopkins adding the XTRAC® 308 nm excimer laser and a psoriasis meta-analysis highlighting strong efficacy. Earlier, the company reported growing TheraclearX adoption in Mexico. Today’s vitiligo trial publication and reimbursement tailwinds fit a pattern of clinically supportive data against a stressed equity backdrop.
Market Pulse Summary
This announcement highlights robust pediatric vitiligo data for STRATA’s XTRAC® 308‑nm excimer laser combined with JAK inhibitors, including an 85.5% response rate and strong facial lesion outcomes. It also underscores reimbursement momentum, with more than 75% of non‑psoriasis patients covered in 2025 and CPT code changes from January 1, 2027 expected to expand eligible indications. Against prior disclosures of a $6.3 million net loss and going‑concern risks, monitoring execution, financing, and adoption trends remains important.
Key Terms
randomized controlled trial medical
jak inhibitors medical
tacrolimus medical
ifn-γ/jak-stat1 medical
apoptosis medical
dermo epidermal junction medical
biologic drugs medical
cpt regulatory
AI-generated analysis. Not financial advice.
Multicenter prospective RCT published in JAAD confirms superiority of XTRAC® Excimer Laser plus oral JAK inhibitors over tacrolimus combination therapy in children aged 2–18 years with progressive vitiligo, fueling continued market growth and expanding indications
HORSHAM, Pa., May 18, 2026 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- STRATA Skin Sciences, Inc. (“STRATA” or the “Company”), a global leader in excimer laser therapy dedicated to developing, commercializing, and marketing innovative products for the treatment of dermatologic conditions, today highlighted the publication of a landmark multicenter, prospective, randomized controlled trial in the Journal of the American Academy of Dermatology demonstrating that STRATA’s 308-nm excimer laser, when combined with oral JAK inhibitors, produces unprecedented repigmentation outcomes in pediatric patients with progressive vitiligo — with a favorable safety profile across all 188 children enrolled over a 48-week treatment period.
The study, conducted across five leading academic dermatology centers in China, enrolled children aged 2–18 years and compared two treatment arms: oral JAK inhibitors (baricitinib or tofacitinib) combined with 308-nm excimer laser therapy twice weekly (Group A) versus topical tacrolimus combined with the same excimer laser protocol (Group B).
KEY STUDY FINDINGS
- Overall response rate of
85.5% in the JAK inhibitor + excimer laser group versus53.8% in the tacrolimus + excimer laser control group (P<.001) - Face and neck lesions achieved a
97.3% response rate in Group A, including a64.9% “significantly effective” rate, compared to59.5% in controls - Trunk and limb response rates of
89.3% and88.9% , respectively, versus61.6% and64.9% in controls - 33 lesions in the combination group achieved >
95% repigmentation by week 48, compared to only 3 in the control arm - Mixed-effects modeling confirmed a statistically significant
21.7% higher repigmentation rate for the JAK inhibitor + excimer laser combination (β = 0.217,95% CI: 0.204–0.230, P<.001) - All adverse events were mild to moderate in severity and fully resolved with appropriate management; no cases of tuberculosis or hepatitis B/C were observed
- Quality of life improvements, measured by the Children’s Dermatology Life Quality Index, were significantly greater in Group A, reaching statistical significance by week 48 (P<.001)
“This publication is a powerful validation of our personalized medicine approach and confirms what we have long believed — that the XTRAC® excimer laser is not just a stand-alone therapy, but an essential, synergistic component of next-generation combination regimens. XTRAC®- 308-nm excimer laser served as the phototherapy backbone for both arms, underscoring its central and indispensable role in modern vitiligo combination therapy.” said Dr. Dolev Rafaeli, President and CEO of STRATA Skin Sciences. “The unprecedented response rates seen here in children — a historically underserved and difficult-to-treat population — reinforce the growing body of peer-reviewed evidence supporting the XTRAC® platform as the cornerstone of modern vitiligo care. We are proud to see our technology driving outcomes that meaningfully improve patients’ lives.”
The mechanistic basis for these results reflects the complementary action of both therapies: JAK inhibitors suppress the upstream IFN-γ/JAK-STAT1 autoimmune signaling cascade that drives melanocyte destruction, while the 308-nm excimer laser simultaneously induces targeted apoptosis of pathogenic T cells at the dermo epidermal junction and actively promotes melanocyte migration and repopulation within lesional skin. Together, these mechanisms address both the immunological and cellular dimensions of vitiligo in a true personalized medicine approach.
Intellectual Property Portfolio
STRATA’s growing portfolio of patent applications is designed to support intellectual property protection and potential market exclusivity for combination therapies involving its XTRAC® excimer laser when used with JAK inhibitors, systemic agents, and biologic drugs. These pending or applied-for patents underpin STRATA’s strategy to expand into new clinical indications, including vitiligo and other inflammatory and autoimmune skin conditions.
“It is important that we continue to grow our market by expanding into new indications, while maximizing revenue opportunities for the Company and our partner clinics,” said Dr. Dolev Rafaeli, President and Chief Executive Officer of STRATA Skin Sciences. “Foundational to this long-term growth initiative are our proactive investments in technology development and patent filings, which are intended to provide broad intellectual property coverage around emerging combination therapy approaches.”
Further, the importance of these patent fillings lies in their pioneering role in defining and protecting the combined use of Excimer laser therapy with systemic pharmacologic agents, a significant advancement in the treatment of inflammatory and autoimmune skin diseases such as psoriasis, atopic dermatitis, leukoderma, alopecia areata, and vitiligo. Excimer lasers, particularly at 308 nm, allow for precise, high-dose, localized UVB exposure, delivering therapeutic light energy to affected skin areas while sparing healthy tissue. When used alone, they provide rapid lesion clearance, but their effects may be short-lived in severe or systemic disease. These pending patents strategically address these limitations by combining phototherapy with systemic treatments—including biologic drugs and JAK inhibitors—to deliver a synergistic therapeutic effect, ranging from enhanced treatment response including prolonged remission, potential reduction of the dosage for these drugs, as well as improved safety by limiting the UV exposure to only the affected skin area.
XTRAC® Excimer Laser Insurance Coverage
As previously announced, the American Medical Association’s CPT Editorial Panel, in a landmark decision, approved updates to codes 96920–96922, expanding reimbursement eligibility for XTRAC® Excimer Laser treatments to include all inflammatory and autoimmune skin conditions—such as vitiligo, atopic dermatitis, and alopecia areata—in addition to psoriasis, effective January 1, 2027. Based on STRATA’s 2025 insurance reimbursement coverage data, more than
PUBLICATION DETAILS
Chang S, Zhang L, Liu B, et al. Efficacy of oral JAK inhibitors combined with 308-nm excimer laser in pediatric progressive vitiligo: A multicenter study. Journal of the American Academy of Dermatology. Published online March 19, 2026. doi:10.1016/j.jaad.2026.02.096
About STRATA Skin Sciences, Inc.
STRATA Skin Sciences is a medical technology company dedicated to developing, commercializing, and marketing innovative products for the in-office treatment of various dermatologic conditions, such as psoriasis, vitiligo, and acne. Its products include the XTRAC® excimer laser, VTRAC® lamp systems, and the TheraClear® X Acne Therapy System. STRATA is proud to offer these exciting technologies in the U.S. through its unique Partnership Program. STRATA’s popular partnership approach includes a fee per treatment cost structure versus an equipment purchase, installation and use of the device, on-site training for practice personnel, service and maintenance of the equipment, dedicated account and customer service associates, and co-op advertising support to help raise awareness and promote the program within the practice.
Safe Harbor
This press release includes “forward-looking statements” within the meaning of the Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. These statements involve known and unknown risks and uncertainties that may cause actual results to differ materially from those expressed or implied by such statements. STRATA Skin Sciences undertakes no obligation to publicly update or revise any forward-looking statements.
Investor & Media Contact
STRATA Skin Sciences, Inc.
5 Walnut Grove Drive, Suite 140, Horsham, PA 19044
(215) 619-3200 | ir@strataskinsciences.com | strataskinsciences.com
