Treatment recommendations for patients with vitiligo during COVID-19
Authors
Rodrigues, MichellePandya, Amit G.
Hamzavi, Iltefat
Ezzedine, Khaled
Bekkenk, Marcel W.
Harris, John E.
UMass Chan Affiliations
Department of DermatologyDocument Type
Letter to the EditorPublication Date
2021-05-24Keywords
vitiligoCOVID-19
Dermatology
Health Services Administration
Infectious Disease
Skin and Connective Tissue Diseases
Therapeutics
Virus Diseases
Metadata
Show full item recordAbstract
The World Health Organization declared a global pandemic on 12 March 2020 due to the worldwide spread of COVID-19, caused by SARS-CoV-2.1 Vitiligo is an autoimmune disease causing skin depigmentation affecting 0.5%–2% of the population. We do not project an increased risk of infection from COVID-19 in those with vitiligo, as the immune system of such individuals is not compromised and there is currently no evidence that the virus infects melanocytes. However, some patients may have treatment-related immunosuppression and some may have to access in-office narrow band ultraviolet light B (NB-UVB), which could increase their risk of developing COVID-19. At this time, there is a need to balance treatment for vitiligo with the need to reduce exposure to SARS-CoV-2. We have thus outlined the following treatment considerations to guide clinicians in the treatment of their vitiligo patients.Source
Rodrigues M, Pandya AG, Hamzavi I, Ezzedine K, Bekkenk MW, Harris JE. Treatment recommendations for patients with vitiligo during COVID-19. Australas J Dermatol. 2021 May 24. doi: 10.1111/ajd.13610. Epub ahead of print. PMID: 34028796. Link to article on publisher's site
DOI
10.1111/ajd.13610Permanent Link to this Item
http://hdl.handle.net/20.500.14038/27447PubMed ID
34028796Related Resources
ae974a485f413a2113503eed53cd6c53
10.1111/ajd.13610