Can vitiligo affect eye color?

What color does vitiligo make your eyes? The melanocytes (pigment cells) produced in your iris determine the color of your eyes. If vitiligo affects these melanocytes, you might notice a sudden shift in eye color. The exact color can vary by person but may look gray or lighter than your regular eye color.

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What color eyes do people with vitiligo have?

Among the vitiligo patients, approximately 27 percent had blue/gray eyes, 43 percent had tan or brown eyes and 30 percent had green or hazel eyes, which is significantly different from the normal distribution of eye color where approximately 52 percent of Americans of Non-Hispanic European ancestry have blue/gray eyes, ...

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Does vitiligo affect eye sight?

It affects the skin's colour by developing white patches on the body and hair and, in rare cases, discolouration in the eyes occurs. This is why people living with vitiligo are at a high risk of developing eye problems, which could permanently damage vision if left untreated.

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What are the signs of vitiligo in eyes?

Vitiligo may also be associated with eye problems, such as inflammation of the iris, inflammation of the middle layer of the eye (uveitis), and a partial loss of hearing (hypoacusis).

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What other problems can vitiligo cause?

If you see white patches and spots on your skin, it's important to find out if you have vitiligo. This disease increases the risk of having some other autoimmune diseases like thyroid disease and alopecia areata. Some people develop hearing loss or a problem with their vision.

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Is Your Eye Color Real?

30 related questions found

Do people with vitiligo have other health issues?

About 15 to 25 percent of people with vitiligo are also affected by at least one other autoimmune disorder, particularly autoimmune thyroid disease, rheumatoid arthritis, type 1 diabetes, psoriasis , pernicious anemia, Addison disease, systemic lupus erythematosus, celiac disease, Crohn disease, or ulcerative colitis.

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What is vitiligo strongly associated with?

Several studies showed that vitiligo has been associated with autoimmune thyroid diseases, pernicious anemia, Addison's disease.

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What are the three stages of vitiligo?

Localized: Skin patches are found on limited areas of the body. Generalized: Skin patches are scattered around the body. Mucosal : Vitiligo affects the mucous membranes found in the mouth and/or genitals. Focal: Skin patches remain in a small area of the body without spreading in the first two years.

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Does vitiligo get worse as you age?

Research suggests that most people who develop vitiligo do so during childhood. As you age, Dr. Mohta says untreated vitiligo often progresses to involve the surrounding skin or create new patches of discoloration.

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What are 2 symptoms of vitiligo?

Symptoms of Vitiligo
  • Skin, which develops milky-white patches, often on the hands, feet, arms, and face. However, the patches can appear anywhere.
  • Hair, which can turn white in areas where the skin is losing pigment. ...
  • Mucous membranes, such as the inside of your mouth or nose.

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What are the mental side effects of vitiligo?

Vitiligo causes isolation, stigmatization, loss of self-esteem, depression, and self-consciousness.

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Can vitiligo affect your brain?

For every 100,000 person-years, 503 people with vitiligo developed dementia compared to just 102 healthy controls.

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What is the rarest vitiligo?

Mixed type vitiligo is a rare type of vitiligo. People with this type develop both segmental vitiligo and color loss beyond the area with segmental vitiligo.

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Can vitiligo affect hair color?

Vitiligo or Gray Hair? Just as vitiligo can make your body attack the cells that produce melanin in your skin, it can also affect the melanin that gives your hair color. Some people with vitiligo may develop patches of white or gray hair where melanin has been lost. 5 Vitiligo itself does not usually cause hair loss.

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What is the life expectancy with vitiligo?

The disease does not affect life expectancy. However, it can have a significant impact on quality of life, especially psychologically and be responsible for disorders such as depression and anxiety.

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Is vitiligo a big deal?

Vitiligo does not pose a serious threat to one's health, but it can result in physical complications, such as eye issues, hearing problems, and sunburn. People with vitiligo also tend to be more likely to have another autoimmune disease (like thyroid disorders and some types of anemia).

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Should I be worried if I have vitiligo?

Many people who have vitiligo are often otherwise healthy. Even so, it's important to find a doctor like a dermatologist who knows about vitiligo. People who have vitiligo have a higher risk of getting some other medical conditions. You can also get painful sunburns on the skin that has lost color.

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Which vitiligo has bad prognosis?

The one significant observation that we found to have the poor prognostic implication in vitiligo is the presence of mucosal vitiligo.

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How fast does vitiligo turn white?

Segmental vitiligo is unique, even beyond the fact that it doesn't cross the midline. It spreads very quickly, faster than the other forms, but only for about 6 months (sometimes up to a year).

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What is the first look of vitiligo?

Vitiligo signs include: Patchy loss of skin color, which usually first appears on the hands, face, and areas around body openings and the genitals. Premature whitening or graying of the hair on your scalp, eyelashes, eyebrows or beard.

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What is the trigger factor of vitiligo?

Vitiligo can be triggered by stress to the melanin pigment-producing cells of the skin, the melanocytes.

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Does vitiligo mean your immune system is weak?

Vitiligo is an autoimmune disease of the skin, which means that someone with vitiligo has an immune system that is malfunctioning in a small way. The normal role of the immune system is to protect you from infections and cancer.

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Is vitiligo Hereditary or Genetic?

Yes, vitiligo can be considered hereditary. Even though vitiligo is not strictly associated with family genetics, it can run in families. Approximately 30% of people with the condition will have a family history of vitiligo.

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Does vitiligo make you tired?

As non-segmental vitiligo is closely associated with other autoimmune conditions, you may be assessed to see whether you have any symptoms that could suggest an autoimmune condition, such as: being tired and lacking energy (signs of Addison's disease) being thirsty and needing to urinate often (signs of diabetes)

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