Childhood vitiligo: A hospital-based study on 200 patients in Northeast India

Abstract

Background: Vitiligo is a depigmenting disorder which can be psychologically devastating. Childhood-onset vitiligo has different epidemiological and clinical characteristics as compared to adults. Aims and Objectives: The aim was to study the clinico-epidemiological and hematologic investigation profiles of childhood vitiligo. Materials and Methods: First 200 pediatric patients younger than 18 years, with vitiligo who attended the dermatology outpatient department of a tertiary center in Northeast India, between September 2015 and August 2017 were included in the study. A detailed history and examination along with autoimmune diseases and laboratory parameters were recorded. Results: Among the 200 patients, 62% were girls. The mean age was 10.3 ± 4.9 years. The mean age at onset was 9.1 ± 4.9 years (ranging 2 months–17 years), with duration of disease varying from 1 month to 8 years with mean duration of 1.39 ± 1.63 years. Most common pattern of vitiligo was vulgaris (39.5%) followed by focal (25%), segmental (15.5%) genital (10%), acral and lateral lip (8%), and acrofacial (4%). Family history of vitiligo was seen in 12% of patients. In 96% patients, only