A 5-year study of 167 patients with vitiligo in a referral hospital in Northern Saudi Arabia

A study of 167 consecutive patients with vitiligo seen in a referral hospital, in Northern Saudi Arabia, showed that the disorder occurred in all age groups with a peak incidence in the second decade. Vitiligo is the presenting complaint in 2.6% of our new patients. There was a female preponderance, with a positive family history in as many as 45% of patients. The lesions were segmental in 9% of cases and the mucous membranes were involved in 6% of patients. The limbs were the most frequently affected part of the body. Vitiligo was associated with diabetes mellitus and thyroid disease in 8 and 1.2% of patients respectively. (The prevalence of diabetes mellitus and thyroid disease in Saudi Arabia is about 4.5 and 0.05% respectively.) Treatment with psoralens or topical fluorinated steroids resulted in a cosmetically acceptable repigmentation in about 70% of patients. Poor responses to treatment were seen mainly in patients with extensive lesions of long duration. As compared to studies in Western countries, vitiligo in Northern Saudi Arabia shows more familial aggregation. Also, in contrast to some developing countries, the patients, their extended families and the general public were familiar with the disease. It was not associated with social stigma.