Internist Questions Vitiligo

Can vitiligo ever be cured?

I'm 28 and noticed that my skin is losing some pigment. I think that I might have vitiligo. Can it be cured?

3 Answers

Unfortunately, vitiligo is a difficult condition to treat. However, in cases where the loss of pigment is not too extensive, the use of certain prescription topicals may be helpful to promote repigmentation. I have also developed a procedure utilizing professional microneedling accompanied by the application of pigment promoters, such as tyrosine and bimatoprost, that has proven quite helpful in some cases of vitiligo and other hypopigmented disorders.
No. It is an autoimmune condition and there is no known cure.
Vitiligo can be well controlled. With effective medical treatment normal pigmentation of the skin can return. By definition, however, vitiligo is an autoimmune disease for which there is presently no cure.