Globally, vitiligo occurs in 1% or so of the population. Vitiligo affects people of all races, including Caucasians. However, the condition is more visible in people with darker skin. Vitiligo can affect people of all age groups, although it is rare in the very young or very old.
Normally, the color of hair and skin is determined by melanin. Vitiligo occurs when cells that produce melanin die or stop functioning. Vitiligo affects people of all skin types, but it may be more noticeable in people with brown or Black skin. The condition is not life-threatening or contagious.
Frequency. Vitiligo is a common disorder, affecting between 0.5 percent and 1 percent of the population worldwide. However, many cases may not be reported, and some researchers suggest the condition may affect up to 1.5 percent of the population.
Triggers. It's possible that vitiligo may be triggered by particular events, such as: stressful events, such as childbirth. skin damage, such as severe sunburn or cuts (this is known as the Koebner response) hormonal changes to the body, such as puberty.
Vitiligo affects all races and sexes equally. It's more visible in people with darker skin tones. Although vitiligo can develop in anyone at any age, macules or patches usually become apparent before age 30.
Vitiligo does not pose a serious threat to one's health, but it can result in physical complications, such as eye issues, hearing problems, and sunburn. People with vitiligo also tend to be more likely to have another autoimmune disease (like thyroid disorders and some types of anemia).
What is known is that the risk of developing vitiligo increases in kids with a family or personal history of thyroid disease, diabetes, and certain conditions like alopecia (an autoimmune disease that causes hair loss). Vitiligo is never contagious — kids can't "catch" it from someone else.
However, for many people with vitiligo, the white patches begin to appear before age 20, and can start in early childhood. Vitiligo seems to be more common in people who have a family history of the disorder or who have certain autoimmune diseases, including: Addison's disease. Pernicious anemia.
Pityriasis versicolor can sometimes be confused with vitiligo, as they both cause the skin to become discoloured in patches. But there are ways to tell the difference: vitiligo often develops symmetrically (on both sides of your body at the same time), while pityriasis versicolor may not.
While researchers are looking for a cure, treatment cannot currently cure this disease. Treatment can help restore lost skin color, but the color (repigmentation) may fade over time. To keep their results, many patients have maintenance treatments.
Vitiligo usually manifests in the second or third decade of life and is believed to be an acquired condition, though a positive family history is present in 30 to 40 percent of cases. Congenital vitiligo and presentation at birth is a very rare entity, but cases in infancy have been reported.
Universal: Pigment loss is widespread across the body. This is the rarest subtype of vitiligo.
Yes, vitiligo can be considered hereditary. Even though vitiligo is not strictly associated with family genetics, it can run in families. Approximately 30% of people with the condition will have a family history of vitiligo. Therefore, children will not get vitiligo strictly on the grounds that a parent has it.
As with any type of skin condition visible for the world to see, vitiligo can be difficult to live with. Many diagnosed with the disorder suffer from low self-esteem, depression, and anxiety. Having the information and some tools available may help you gain some control over vitiligo.
The relationship between vitiligo and pregnancy is not widely acknowledged. It may be associated with adverse pregnancy outcomes such as recurrent miscarriage, prematurity, intrauterine growth retardation and pre-eclampsia.
However, it is not a rule that children of vitiligo parents will always have vitiligo. Relatively, the chance of the offspring having vitiligo may be somewhat higher if one or more of the parents have vitiligo. Vitiligo does not spread by touch or contact. It does not affect marriage life or physical relationship.
In addition, some people may feel embarrassed by their vitiligo as it may stand out more obviously when the surrounding skin is tanned or richly pigmented. Having vitiligo may affect you psychologically and you may experience anxiety, depression and low self-esteem.
As you age, Dr. Mohta says untreated vitiligo often progresses to involve the surrounding skin or create new patches of discoloration. This is also known as generalized or nonsegmental vitiligo, which is the most common type.
Complications of vitiligo are social stigmatization and mental stress, eye involvement like iritis, depigmented skin is more prone to sunburn, skin cancer, and hearing loss because of loss of cochlear melanocytes. Other complications are related to medications like skin atrophy after prolonged use of topical steroids.
Vitiligo is an acquired depigmentation disorder affecting 1-4% of the world population with equal distribution in both genders and all ethnic groups [1–3].
As perhaps one of the most famous celebrities with vitiligo, Michael Jackson is also the most commonly searched-for person with this skin condition online, according to the University of Massachusetts. Reports suggest Jackson first experienced vitiligo symptoms in the 1980s, when he was in his mid-twenties.
An observation study conducted by the Indian Journal of Clinical and Experimental Dermatology found the Indian subcontinent has the highest prevalence of vitiligo in the world, at about 8.8 per cent.