Common Name:
vitiligo
Age of Onset:
Over half of the people suffering from vitiligo notice symptoms before they turn twenty. This is not a requirement, and the disease can begin at any time.
Duration: Vitiligo will never go away naturally. Once it appears, it is there for good.
Males/Females/Race: Some people are genetically disposed towards having vitiligo, but race and sex are not factors.
Cause: There is no single isolated cause for vitiligo, but a genetic disposition towards the disease does exist (NALP1 gene). Vitiligo can also be caused by stress; the immune system will begin eliminating pigment. Those with Addison's disease are also more likely to have vitiligo.
Symptoms: The common identifying symptom of vitigo is a collection of white patches on the skin. These patches are most often found on the extremities (arms and legs), but can also be on the torso, face, and groin. In extreme cases, they cover the entire body. The lack of pigment also changes the hair color of the affected areas to white. This explains why many people with the condition have streaks of pale hair; their scalps have white patches. People with vitiligo tend to gray prematurely. Mucous membranes such as the mouth, nose, and eyes are also affected and turn a purple or golden brown. The eye can even become inflamed, sometimes causing blindness. However, blindness is not a symptom of vitiligo. Due to the lack of protective pigment, people suffering from vitiligo are more sensitive to the sun.
Prognosis: Vitiligo will never go away naturally, but it will move around on your skin. White patches may repigment, and pigmented patches may become white. Patients suffering from vitiligo will notice an increase in white patches over time; sometimes it will overtake the entire body, but it will often stop before that stage and refuse to get any bigger. Its progress is extremely erratic.
Treatment Options: Eating Ginkgo biloba (Gingko trees!) pills will inhibit the spread of white patches. Staying out of the sun and avoiding becoming tan will make the vitiligo patches less noticeable. Cortico steroid cream is the most common treatment, and creams such as Protopic and Elidel may stimulate some repigmentation. UV radiation may also cause repigmentation. Because vilitigo is caused by the lack of melanocytes (pigment-making cells), some patients have melanocyte graphs on their skin to restore pigment. Others take the other extreme and have all of their melanocytes removed chemically, making their skin an even porcelain white.
Link:
http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/vitiligo.html
