Assessment of the Serum Ischemia Modified Albumin Level and its Relation to Total Oxidant Status and Disease Activity in Vitiligo Patients

Abstract

itiligo is a chronic acquired depigmentary disorder of the skin, hair and mucous membrane characterized by asymptomatic well-circumscribed white macules and patches that can affect any part of the body with no certain predilection of sex or race. Vitiligo is a complex multifactorial disease, different mechanisms of pathogenesis had been suggested including genetic, immunological, neural and environmental factors. Neither one mechanism can account for the pathogenesis of the disease, rather interlacement between these different factors in genetically susceptible individuals are proposed as a unifying approach to understand the pathogenesis of the disease. It’s a life-altering disease with a tremendous effect on the patient’s quality of life. Oxidative stress had been implicated as a major contributor to the vitiligo pathogenesis, as the imbalance between ROS and the antioxidant defense mechanisms were widely observed among the vitiligo patients.