Complications after treatment
Treatment for vitiligo is not always successful, and any improvements may not last. It is quite likely that the white patches will come back.
Some areas of your body, such as your face, may respond better to treatment than others. Children with vitiligo may respond better to treatment than adults.
Sunburn
If you have vitiligo, you need to be particularly careful to protect your skin from the sun. See Live Well: protect skin in the sun for information and advice about how you can do this.
Self-esteem
Vitiligo does not affect your physical health. However, if you have vitiligo you may feel distressed and unhappy about how your skin looks. It may seriously affect your self-confidence, regardless of how much or how little your skin is affected. It can cause embarrassment, and may affect you at work and in your personal relationships.
If vitiligo affects your self-confidence, speak to your GP about it. They will be able to give you advice and information about counselling and support groups.
Other autoimmune conditions
Vitiligo is thought to be an autoimmune condition (see Vitiligo - causes for more information), and it can be associated with other autoimmune conditions. Around a third of people with vitiligo may also have another autoimmune condition, such as:
- thyroid conditions, such as hyperthyroidism (overactive thyroid gland)
- pernicious anaemia – an autoimmune condition that affects your stomach
- diabetes – a long-term condition caused by too much sugar in the blood
- systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) – a type of lupus that can affect most of the body’s tissues and organs
- Addison’s disease – an autoimmune condition that affects the adrenal glands and the hormones they produce
Other complications
Sometimes, vitiligo can affect your eyes. For example:
- a lack of pigment in parts of your eye, such as the layers of tissue that surround the outer surface of your retina (pigment epithelium) or support your retina (choroid)
- inflammation in part of your eye (uveitis)
Complications of vitiligo can also include partial loss of hearing (hypoacusis).
