July 25- World Vitiligo Day

Vitiligo is a chronic autoimmune disorder that causes patches of skin to lose pigment or color. This happens when the skin cells that make pigment are attacked and destroyed, causing the skin to turn a milky-white color. There is no cure for vitiligo, but there are treatments that can be very effective at stopping the progression and reversing its effects.

Symptoms of vitiligo include: milky-white patches of skin typically on the hands, feet, arms and face. Hair that turns white in areas where the skin is losing pigment. Medications such as corticosteroids or a calcineurin inhibitor can be used to return color to white patches of skin.

At Kouba Dermatology, we recommend our patients using phototherapy treatments. This is where patients come into the office 1-2 times a week and get in a narrowband ultraviolet B device. The most common side effect from the treatment is redness. Some patients do experience an almost sun burn feeling with increase in times and the treatment is then adjusted to prevent that from happening in the future. Once a patient is at a level where the skin condition is stable then improving, we start to slowly decrease levels and time to eventually get patient off the light treatment. The goal of this is to have you at the lowest level needed to stabilize the condition then start clearing it. Most patients do treatment for a few months with great improvement then can maintain condition with topical steroids or whatever the provider and patient see fit.