Vitiligo

Vitiligo is a chronic skin requisite which causes loss of pigment, resulting in irregular pale patches of skin. If the cells which make melanin die or no longer form melanin, slowly growing white patches of asymmetric shapes appear on your skin. Common sites are unguarded areas (face, neck, eyes, nostrils, nipples, navel, genitalia), body folds (armpits, groin), sites of injury (cuts, scrapes, burns) and around pigmented moles ( halo naevi ).

Vitiligo generally starts as small areas of pigment loss which spread and become abundant with time. These variations in your skin can result in stress and worries about your appearance. There is some attestation suggesting it is caused by a combination of auto-immune, genetic, and environmental factors. The population prevalence in the United States is considered to be between 1% and 2%. There is no cure for vitiligo. The aim of treatment is to stop or slow the progression of depigmentation and, if you want, attempt to return some color to your skin.

Vitiligo is a common skin disorder in which white spots arise on the skin usually occurring on both sides of the body in the same location. It is an acquired liberal disorder in which some or all of the melanocytes in the interfollicular epidermis, and occasionally those in the hair follicles, are selectively destroyed.

One theory is which people develop antibodies which destroy the melanocytes in their own bodies. Eventually, some people have reported that a single event such as sunburn or emotional distress focussed vitiligo however, these events have not been systematically proven to cause vitiligo.

Causes of Vitiligo

The common Causes of Vitiligo :

• Vitiligo occassionally occurs at the site of an old injury.
• Vitiligo betimes runs in families, meaning that a genetic factor may be involved.
• Patients with vitiligo are perceptive to free radicals and need aggressive vitamin therapy, see below.

Symptoms of Vitiligo

Some Symptoms of Vitiligo :

• Sudden or gradual complexion of flat areas of normal-feeling skin with complete pigment loss
• Family history of vitiligo
• White hairs within depigmented patches
• Chalk white patches of skin often located symmetrically on both sides of the body

Treatment of Vitiligo

• Vitamin D ointment by suggestion can help some people with vitiligo.
• There is no easy treatment of vitiligo. Cover-up cosmetics such as Dermablend, Chromelin Complexion Blender and Covermark work well.
• Narrowband UVB is safer than PUVA and works just as well for the treatment of vitiligo.
• Acute case of vitiligo that do not react to treatment can be treated with Benoquin by prescription.  This medication causes permanent whitening of the dark areas of the skin and should only be used as a last resort.
• Tacrolimus ointment .1% for 6 months will help many people with vitiligo.  This medication also requires a prescription.
• Topical cortisone ointments by prescription can treat many cases of vitiligo.
• PUVA light treatment has a high success rate. This treatment is very time-consuming.  The patient must come to the office 2-4 times per week for 15-30 minutes to stand in a light box for 100-300 treatments. The treatment usually takes a year or more and does not work for every patient which tries it; 50-70% of patients treated get a good response.

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