Vitiligo Surgery
Vitiligo is a hypopigmentation disorder characterized by a reduction of melanocytes—pigment cells from the basal layer of the epidermis—which is expressed by white macules or patches presented both on the skin and mucous membranes. Although the exact etiology of this disease is still unclear, there are several hypotheses that try to explain the cause of depigmented skin changes: nervous, cytotoxic, and autoimmune . Patients diagnosed with vitiligo have an increased risk of developing Addison’s disease, diabetes mellitus, pernicious anemia, and rheumatoid arthritis , as well as hidradenitis suppurativa or alopecia areata . While other systemic diseases—in particular, diseases with an immune/autoimmune and inflammatory background—are observed more frequently in vitiligo, this skin disorder is not considered life-threatening. However, the psychological aspect plays a very important role in the lives of people affected by this kind of health complication . It has been proven that patients with vitiligo present severely lowered self-esteem, which, in turn, affects social behavior and may determine the development of depression, whereby this problem is more often observed among women than men . Due to the fact that vitiligo is the most common hypopigmentation disease, the prevalence of which is estimated at 0.1–2%, depending on the sources , numerous researchers from around the world are trying to improve the available forms of treatment as well as develop new techniques, due to which the therapeutic effect will be able to bring the best possible results. Presently, there are several methods for treating hypopigmentation changes in the course of vitiligo. In the case where commonly used therapies, mainly those based on topical corticosteroids and phototherapy, do not give satisfactory results, surgical treatment should be considered .