VITILIGO Friends

 VSI Conference 2007 - Vitiligo Support International Conference was in Historic Williamsburg, Va on July 13 - July 15 and this was a tremendous success!  There were 212 in attendance at this conference.  We had a tremendous time and met some of the most wonderful people ever.

The best place for support by far is:  Vitiligo Support International, Encino, CA.  This is the LARGEST Vitiligo organization in the World.

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What Research Is Being Done on Vitiligo?

For more than a decade, research on how melanocytes play a role in vitiligo has greatly increased. This includes research on autologous melanocyte transplants. At the University of Colorado, NIAMS supports a large collaborative project involving families with vitiligo in the United States and the United Kingdom. To date, over 2,400 patients are involved. It is hoped that genetic analysis of these families will uncover the location--and possibly the specific gene or genes--conferring susceptibility to the disease. Doctors and researchers continue to look for the causes of and new treatments for vitiligo.

Where Can People Get More Information About Vitiligo?

Vitiligo Support International
P.O. Box 4008
Valley Village, CA 91617-0008
Phone: (818) 752-9002
Fax: (818) 337-7268
Email: info@vitiligosupport.org
www.vitiligosupport.org

* I highly recommend this organization.

National Vitiligo Foundation
700 Olympic Plaza Circle, Suite 404
Tyler, TX 75701
Phone: (903) 595-3713
Fax: (903) 593-1545
E-mail: info@nvfi.org
www.nvfi.org/index.html

The foundation strives to locate, inform, and counsel vitiligo patients and their families; to increase public awareness and concern for the vitiligo patient; to broaden the concern for the patient within the medical community; and to encourage, promote, and fund increased scientific and clinical research on the cause, treatment, and ultimate cure.

American Vitiligo Research Foundation

AVRF provides public awareness and counseling to the families and those afflicted by this disease. Founded 1995. Raise awareness, educate, and support not only the patients but family members also. Networking, literature, newsletter, information and referrals, yearly seminars and conferences. Wayne McCormack is an Advisory Board Member.

American Vitiligo Research Fdn.
P.O. Box 7540
Clearwater, FL 33758
Voice: 727-461-3899
Fax: 727-461-4796
 www.avrf.org
E-mail:  vitiligo@avrf.org

Vitiligo also known as leucoderma, which simply means white (leuco) skin (derma), i.e. a disorder where the skin loses its normal coloration. It is also medically known as achromia, which means loss of color.

Basically, Vitiligo can hardly be called as a disease but a skin-disorder that has more social than medical significance, especially amongst the dark skinned people. Due to destruction of the melanin (pigment) cells due to lesser known processes (largely what is called as an auto-immune disorder) the normal skin starts loosing pigments from various parts of the skin, in a varying speed and extent. Our clinical experience based on the treatment of over 4500 cases, suggests that there is a strong genetic factor in the background of most cases, especially those who have extensive vitiligo or those who have vitiligo affecting the finger-tips, toes, lips or the genitals. The indication of strong genetic factor is observed in the form of family history of one or more of the auto-immune diseases such as vitiligo, diabetes, hypothyroid, alopecia areata, cancer, rheumatoid arthritis or allergies.

The vitiligo sufferers are observed all over the world, including the white skin communities. However, epidemiologically most cases are recorded in India (8.8%) and Mexico. Estimated 1-2% of the Americans have vitiligo as per the survey made by the American Academy of Dermatology. Males and females are affected equally, inclusive of children age group. It may begin at any age. Childhood vitiligo is not uncommon.