Clinical and Epidemiological Characteristics of Vitiligo at Different Ages: An Analysis of 571 Patients in Northwest China

Objective: This study was performed to elucidate the clinical and epidemiological characteristics of vitiligo patients of different ages in Northwest China. Methods: We retrospectively reviewed the case records and questionnaires of all patients diagnosed with vitiligo, who visited People’s Hospital of Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region from May 2016 to December 2017. The clinical and epidemiological characteristics of these patients were analyzed by Pearson’s χ2 test and Fisher’s exact test. Results: In total, we collected data of 571 vitiligo patients with age of 32.9±16.4 years. The prevalence of segmental vitiligo in children and adolescents ≤19 years old (24/175[13.7%]) was higher than that in adults aged from 20-59 years (23/370[6.2%]) and advanced patients aged ≥60 years (1/26[3.8%]) (P=0.020). The prevalence of progressive vitiligo was higher in children and adolescents ≤19 years (72/175[41.1%]) and adults from 20–59 years (141/370[38.1%) than in patients ≥60 years (5/26[19.2%]) (P=0.063). Children and adolescents ≤19 years with vitiligo had a higher rate of a family history of vitiligo (20/175[11.4%]) than adults (20/370[5.4%]) and advanced age (1/26[3.8%]) (P=0.031). Conclusions: This study provides clinical evidence that vitiligo at different ages has different characteristics, mainly regarding an increased incidence of segmental vitiligo, a higher prevalence of atopic dermatitis and halo nevus, and a more common positive family history among children and adolescent patients. Key words: vitiligo; age grouping; epidemiology; prevalence