Study on trace elements levels in vitiligo and normal subjects

Introduction: Vitiligo is characterized by complete loss of ultraviolet (UV) protective pigment producing cells melanocytes. Due to the appearance of white depigmented patches causing ugly look, the disease, the through not life threatening, could be psychologically debilitating. Despite the demonstration of the presence of mild inflammatory infiltrate in the skin paralleling the loss of melanocytes, vitiligo is not an inflammatory dermatoses. Materials and Methods: The study comprised 30 Vitiligo patients, both males and females, of age between 10-80 years. The patients were randomly selected from the outpatient clinic of Dermatology, Venereology and Leprosy Department, Narayana medical college and hospital. Cu, Zn and Se were estimated by using Atomic Absorption Spectrometry. Results: In vitiligo patients the level of serum zinc were diminished while the level of serum copper, and selenium were increased. These changes were significantly evident in severe Vitiligo (P Conclusion: Recent studies on the role of trace elements in the etiopathogenesis and treatment of Vitiligo have shown controversial findings and are still limited. More studies are required to clarify the importance of these findings in etiopathogenesis or treatment. Keywords: Copper, Zinc, Selenium and Vitiligo.