What Is New In Vitiligo Treatments
مجلة نبض – أشجان المسعودي
Vitiligo in 2012 Incidence ranges from 0,1% to 8,8% in different countries. it has a lot of treatments modalities which are dependent on repigmentation and stabilization of the depigmentation process. Although there is still no therapeutic cure for vitiligo, the many options available may lead to satisfactory results in most patients.
The old treatment modalities include:
Repigmentation therapies:
Narrowband UVB-
Psoralen plus phototherapy-
Topical (paint) PUVA-
PUVASOL (psoralens + natural sunlight-
Khellin plus UVA-
phenylalanine plus UVA-
Corticosteroids-
Topical immunosupressent-
Surgical therapy: Minigrafting -Suction blister epidermal grafting-
Micropegmentation-
Laser µphototherapy
–Excimer laser
-Focused microphototherapy
-Depigmentation
The NEW treatment modalities IN 2012
– Normal skin is used as donor tissue and then grafts are surgically transplanted on areas of vitiligo
– Patients who are candidates for this procedure must have stable vitiligo, or vitiligo that has not changed for at least six months.
– This procedure can be used for patients with limited areas of vitiligo
– Patients can decide to use grafts on one area of the body (such as the face) and choose another therapy for other areas affected by vitiligo (such as the hands).
– Skin grafting has a high success rate — 80 to 90 percent in most patients
-In this procedure, melanocytes and keratinocytes are obtained surgically under local anesthesia from the patient and then grown in a culture in the lab overnight. Once grown, the cells are then placed or applied on the skin’s vitiligo patches.
-This therapy is administered in-office and best used in areas of limited vitiligo where the vitiligo has been stable for at least six months.
-Melanocyte transplants have a very high success rate of 95 percent
-Few dermatologic centers in the United States are offering this specialized procedure, but it is expects that it will be available to more patients in the future
References
-Rook’s textbook of dermatology – 8th edition
-Fitzpatrick’s dermatology in general medicine textbook – 7th edition
-American academe of dermatology
http://www.aad.org/stories-and-news/news-releases/new-surgical-techniques-hold-promise-for-treating-vitiligo
