Generalized vitiligo and associated autoimmune diseases in Japanese patients and their families.

BACKGROUND: Generalized vitiligo is an acquired disorder in which depigmented macules result from the autoimmune loss of melanocytes from the involved regions of skin. Generalized vitiligo is frequently associated with other autoimmune diseases, particularly autoimmune thyroid diseases (Hashimoto's thyroiditis and Graves' disease), rheumatoid arthritis, adult-onset type 1 diabetes mellitus, psoriasis, pernicious anemia, systemic lupus erythematosus, and Addison's disease. METHODS: One hundred and thirty-three Japanese patients with generalized vitiligo were enrolled in this study to investigate the occurrence of autoimmune diseases in Japanese patients with generalized vitiligo and their families. RESULTS: Twenty-seven of the patients with generalized vitiligo (20.3%) had autoimmune diseases, particularly autoimmune thyroid disease (sixteen patients, 12%) and alopecia areata (seven patients, 5.3%). Thirty-five patients (26.3%) had a family history of generalized vitiligo and/or other autoimmune diseases. Familial generalized vitiligo was present in fifteen (11.3%), including four families with members affected by autoimmune disorders. Twenty (15.0%) had one or more family members with only autoimmune disorders. CONCLUSIONS: Among Japanese vitiligo patients, there is a subgroup with strong evidence of genetically determined susceptibility to not only vitiligo, but also to autoimmune thyroid disease and other autoimmune disorders.