Study of Thyroid Dysfunction in Vitiligo Patients

Background: Vitiligo is an autoimmune depigmentation skin disease resulting from melanocyte damage with an estimated global prevalence of 0.5–2%. It most often begins before age of 30 and may be linked with autoimmune, genetic, and environmental issues, and has a significant association with thyroid illnesses. Thyroid dysfunction early detection in vitiligo patients especially symptomatic or with family history can improve clinical outcome and disease course.
Aim: We aimed to study thyroid dysfunction in a group of Egyptian patients with vitiligo.
Patients and methods: A cross-sectional study included 200 patients clinically diagnosed with vitiligo by two expert dermatologists and confirmed through Wood's light examination. The study was conducted at Dermatology Department of Menoufia University Hospital, Vitiligo Unit in Kafr El-Sheikh General Hospital, Kafr El-Sheikh Dermatology Hospital, Mabaret El Asafra Labs. Results: The mean age of vitiligo patients was 36.5 years with slight female predominance (55.5%), and the most common clinical types were vitiligo vulgaris (43%) and acro-facial vitiligo (41.5%). Thyroid disorders were detected in 7.5% of patients, most commonly sub-clinical hypothyroidism, with no significant gender difference. However, patients with thyroid dysfunction had a significantly longer disease duration. FT3 levels showed a significant gender difference and varied with clinical types, particularly elevated in focal vitiligo, while thyroid dysfunction was most frequent in vitiligo vulgaris and absent in focal cases. Conclusion: Thyroid dysfunction, particularly hypothyroidism, may be associated with certain vitiligo types and disease duration, emphasizing importance of routine thyroid function screening in vitiligo patients to ensure early detection and management of potential thyroid abnormalities.