Do You Know These 5 Common Signs of Vitiligo?

Vitiligo, an autoimmune disorder that causes white patches on the face and body, affects up to 2.8 million Americans. The condition can have a devastating impact on people’s lives, especially when depigmentation is visible on the hands and face.

Experts don’t entirely understand what causes vitiligo, and there is no cure. However, there is a treatment to help manage this disorder. The board-certified dermatologists at Shady Grove Dermatology in Rockville, Maryland, are experts in helping patients with vitiligo. Here’s what they want you to know about the disorder. 

Vitiligo 101

Vitiligo is a disease that causes the loss of skin pigmentation, causing white scars on the skin. Though much about vertigo is a mystery, researchers suspect it is an autoimmune response triggered by environmental factors.

Anyone can develop vitiligo; men and women are affected equally. However, the condition is more evident in people with darker skin tones. Vitiligo can develop at any age but usually appears before age 40, and about half are diagnosed before they turn 21. Vitiligo is not contagious. 

There are two types of vitiligo:

Non-segmental vitiligo (NSV)

NSV is the more common form of vitiligo and can manifest in multiple body parts, usually displaying some symmetry in the location of the patches. 

Segmental

Segmental vitiligo typically affects a specific limb or body part.

Because skin irregularities are pretty common and can range in size, shape, color, and degree of severity, here are five signs that you may have vitiligo, which isn’t life-threatening.

1. You have patches of paler or white skin

The most apparent sign of vitiligo is well-defined patches of white skin caused when pigment-producing cells die or stop producing melanin, which is the pigment that provides skin tone. 

Some patients experience itchiness in the area before the skin whitens. 

2. Your eye color changes

If you have vitiligo, your eye color, which comes from pigmented cells in the iris and retina, can be affected.

3. Your hair turns white

Your hair, eyebrows, eyelashes, or facial hair turns gray or white unexpectedly along with parts of your skin.

4. The insides of your mouth develop white patches

Your mucous membrane is also susceptible to vitiligo, which might appear as a loss of pigmentation within your mouth and nose.

5. You have another disease

In a decade-long study, nearly 20% of vitiligo patients had at least one other autoimmune disease. 

Vitiligo is also associated with thyroid disease and alopecia areata (sudden hair loss). These diagnosed patients had thyroid disease 15 times more common than in the general US population, and alopecia areata was 31 times more common.

What are treatment options for vitiligo?

Treatment may stop or slow the discoloring process and restore some color to your skin. Treatments used by the Shady Grove Dermatology experts include:

Topical medications

Corticosteroid cream may return some pigmentation to the affected areas early on. Results can take several months to show. We may recommend corticosteroid injections or pills. 

Phototherapy

Also called light therapy, phototherapy uses narrow-band ultraviolet B (UVB) to stop or slow the progression of vitiligo. Multiple therapy sessions — two to three times a week for 1 to 3 months — can be required to notice any change, with optimal results taking up to six months.

Important self-care tips

Always protect your skin from the sun’s UV rays. Use a broad-spectrum, water-resistant sunscreen with an SPF of at least 30. Also, steer clear of tanning beds. Artificial UV rays are harmful, too.

Don't get a tattoo; doing so may cause a new patch of vitiligo to appear within two weeks.

For help with vitiligo and all your dermatological needs, visit the board-certified dermatologists at Shady Grove Dermatology. Call 240-246-7417 or request an appointment online today.