2023-10-10 18:20:51
More cases of vitiligo in Italy after the Covid pandemic. The increase observed by dermatologists, together with more serious clinical pictures, is linked not only to the loss of diagnoses and therapies during and after the coronavirus emergency, to immune decompensation and to the particularly stressful period, but is also the effect of masks and of the immoderate use of sanitizing gels. “There is a phenomenon which in technical terms is called Koebner’s reactive isomorphism, whereby repeated trauma to the skin of the patient suffering from vitiligo can generate white spots around the mouth and on the hands, making the disease latent or worsen”, he explains to time.news Health Andrea Paro Vidolin, head of the Photodermatology Center of the Israelite Hospital in Rome.
Furthermore, “particularly stressful moments can, like all dermatological pathologies, create explosions of the pathology”. In our country, 2-3% of the population suffers from vitiligo, a “skin disease characterized by the appearance of milky white patches, generally located around the eyes and mouth, on the hands and feet, elbows and knees and also the axillary cords. It is an autoimmune disease, which can be associated with other autoimmune disorders such as celiac disease and chronic autoimmune thyroiditis.” When these ‘alarm bells’ appear, the dermatologist’s advice is to also do a screening for vitiligo.
White spots can occur in men and women, without differences in gender or even age. “This creates major psychological and relationship problems, especially in childhood and even more so in adolescents – underlines Paro Vidolin – who are more fragile ages. The paradoxical thing is that, due to a regulatory fact, vitiligo in Italy is considered a disorder aesthetic, and this is a big problem, because it is a disease that has a very important social impact. It must absolutely be considered as a real pathology – he points out – and recognized as such”. (continued)
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