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Vitiligo - Vitiligo symptom, treatment, causes

Vitiligo is a disorder of skin pigmentation in which white patches develop where pigment-producing cells have disappeared. The cause is uncertain, but sometimes there is an inherited tendency, while in other cases AUTOIMMUNE DISEASE (in which the immune system produces antibodies that attack one or more of the body's own tissues) is suspected. The patches are sharply differentiated from normal skin. There might be a couple of spots, or patches covering most of the body. Affected skin is very susceptible to sunburn and needs constant protection from sunlight, small patches may be camouflaged with opaque cosmetics. In extensive vitiligo, treatment with drugs called psoralens and ultraviolet A light will induce repigmentation in some cases, but results are unpredictable.

Vitiligo is a pigmentation disorder in which special skin cells (melanocytes) that produce the pigment melanin in the skin as well as the tissues (mucous membranes) that line the inside of the mouth, nose, and genital and rectal areas, and the retina of the eyes are destroyed resulting in irregularly shaped white patches on the skin Any part of the body may be affected. The hair that grows on areas affected by vitiligo sometimes turns white. The cause of vitiligo is not known, but doctors and researchers have several different theories. There is strong evidence that people with vitiligo inherit a group of three genes that make them susceptible to depigmentation. The most widely accepted view is that the depigmentation occurs because vitiligo is an autoimmune disease a disease in which a person's immune system reacts against the body's own organs or tissues. As such, people's bodies produce proteins called cytokines that alter their pigment-producing cells and cause these cells to die. Another theory is that melanocytes destroy themselves. Finally, some people have reported that a single event such as sunburn or emotional distress triggered vitiligo however, these events have not been scientifically proven as causes of vitiligo.

Vitiligo is a common skin disorder in which white spots appear on the skin usually occurring on both sides of the body in the same location. It is quite a common skin condition which can cause extreme distress to sufferers because of its unusual appearance. The hair may also go grey early on the scalp, eyebrows, eyelashes and body. White hair is called 'poliosis'. The retina may also be affected. The loss of melanocytes alters both the structure and function of these organs and results in the absence of pigment. The precise etiology of vitiligo is complex and not fully understood. The disease has been around for thousands of years. About 1 to 2 percent of the world's population have vitiligo. It affects both sexes, all races and all ages. The pathogenetic factors of vitiligo are mainly due to heat in the blood or bodily heat, invasion with exogenous wind. Vitiligo is a condition in which your skin loses melanin, the pigment that determines the color of your skin, hair and eyes. Usually both sides of the body are affected. Common areas of involvement are the face, lips, hands, arms, legs, and genital areas.

Causes of Vitiligo

The common Causes of Vitiligo :

• Skin injury.
• Heredity (over 30 percent of affected persons have reported vitiligo in a parent, sibling, or child).
• Vitiligo sometimes runs in families, meaning that a genetic factor may be involved.
• Patients with vitiligo are sensitive to free radicals and need aggressive vitamin therapy, see below.
• Inflammatory skin disorders.
• Autotoxic response is which the melanocytes self-destruct leaving a toxic residue, that, in turn destroys new melanocytes.
• A case of very severe sunburn.   
• Vitiligo sometimes occurs at the site of an old injury.
• Autotoxic theory - the pigment cells are self-destructive.
• There may be an autoimmune reaction against the pigment cells (the body may destroy its own tissue, which it perceives as foreign).

Symptoms of Vitiligo

Some common Symptoms of Vitiligo :

• Family history of vitiligo.
• Loss or change in color of the inner layer of your eye (retina)
• Sudden or gradual appearance of flat areas of normal-feeling skin with complete pigment loss
• Loss of color in the tissues that line the inside of your mouth (mucous membranes)
• White hairs within depigmented patches.
• Chalk white patches of skin often located symmetrically on both sides of the body.

Treatment of Vitiligo

• The restoration of the normal pigment and can be achieved with repigmentation therapy or corticosteroids.
• Topical psoralen photochemotherapy.
• Oral medications, such as trimethylpsoralen (Trisoralen).
• Repigmenting agents such as Oxsoralen (methoxsalen).
• Vitamin D ointment by prescription can help some people with vitiligo.
• Exposure to intense ultraviolet light, such as narrow-band UVB therapy.
• Cosmetics.
• Systemic phototherapy induces cosmetically satisfactory repigmentation in up to 70% of early or localized cases.
• 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 often takes a year or more and does not work for every patient that tries it; 50-70% of patients treated get a good response.