Vitiligo is a skin disorder characterized by the appearance of white patches on the skin. Vitiligo can affect any part of the body. 1-3% of World Population is affected by Vitiligo. Nearly 50 percent of people affected by Vitiligo are below 20 years of age and the rest of them are affected before 40 years. VITILIGO affects both sexes and all races equally. Common among people suffering from other Autoimmune diseases like Thyroid.

Causes:

• No scientifically proven cause
• Three Hypotheses proposed are
  • AUTOIMMUNE HYPOTHESIS : Immune system reacts against its own body organs or Tissues. Melanocytes destroy themselves
  • NEURAL HYPOTHESIS:Neurochemical mediators released at nerve endings might destroy Melanocytes
  • AUTOCYTOTOXIC HYPOTHESIS
• Focal pattern vitiligo and segmental vitiligo remain localized to one part of the body
• In some cases, the depigmented patches do not spread
• White patches will spread to other areas of the body over a period of time
• In some cases rate of spread is slow, whereas in some cases it spreads rapidly
• Due to Physical and emotional stress the additional depigmentation takes place

Symptoms :

• Appearance of white patches on the skin
• The white patches are more commonly found on sun-exposed areas of the body
• Vitiligo generally appears in one of three patterns:
  
  • Focal pattern— Limited depigmentation areas
  • Segmental pattern—depigment patches develop only one side of the body
  • Generalized pattern— the most common pattern. Depigmentation occurs symmetrically on both sides of the body
• Before depigmentation, a rash, sunburn, or other skin trauma will appear the site of vitilig
• Premature (before age 35) greying of the hair,eye lashes, eye brows and bread

Vitiligo Diagnosis at Dermacare:

• Physical examination and laboratory tests are administered
• Dr. Durga Prasad will enquire about your medical history.
• Biopsy of the affected skin is examined under a microscope
• The main goal of treating vitiligo at Dermacare is to improve appearance.
• Therapy for vitiligo takes a long time—it usually must be continued for 6 to 18 months.
• The choice of therapy depends on the number of white patches;
• Customized treatment will be administered after study of reports
• Current treatment options for vitiligo include medical, surgical, and adjunctive therapies (therapies that can be used along with surgical or medical treatments

Medical therapies

• Topical steroid therapy—steroid creams and mild topical corticosteroids are prescribed to apply on the skin. The mild topical corticosteroid cream for children under 10 years old and higher potency for adults is usually is prescribed.
• Psoralen photochemotherapy—also known as psoralen and ultraviolet A therapy, or PUVA therapy, this is probably the most effective treatment for vitiligo available. The goal of PUVA therapy is to repigment the white patches. The treated person has to minimize exposure of sunlight. Topical psoralen photochemotherapy— This treatment is advised for the people with a few depigmented patches and for children above 2 years old and elderly people with a localized patches of vitiligo. The artificial UVA light is administered once or twice a week and the dosage is increased over a period of time. Oral psoralen photochemotherapy— is used for people with extensive vitiligo (20 per cent of body is depigmented) and for people who do not respond to topical PUVA therapy. Treatment is usually given 2 or 3 times a week. This treatment is not given to the children below 10 years of age. Depigmentation—this treatment involves fading the rest of the skin on the body to match the areas that are already white. For people who have vitiligo on more than 50 percent of their bodies, depigmentation may be the best treatment option. Patients apply the drug monobenzylether of hydroquinone twice a day to pigmented areas until they match the already-depigmented areas. You must avoid direct skin-to-skin contact with other people for at least 2 hours after applying the drug, as transfer of the drug may cause depigmentation of the other person's skin.