Regenerative Medicine Offers Positive Results for Treating Vitiligo

Regenerative medicine, including cell therapy, PRP, and stem cells, is a safe and effective way to treat vitiligo, either on its own or combined with other methods, according to a study in the Journal of Cosmetic Dermatology.

Vitiligo is a long-term skin condition that destroys the cells responsible for skin color, causing white patches that can affect a person’s confidence, self-esteem and relationships.

Traditional treatments for vitiligo, such as topical creams and phototherapy with Narrowband Ultraviolet B (NB-UVB), have had mixed results and don’t always stop the condition from coming back.

More recently, regenerative medicine has become a promising new way to treat vitiligo.

This approach focuses on repairing damaged skin and bringing back melanocytes, the cells that give skin its color. Techniques including cell therapy, platelet-rich plasma (PRP), and melanocyte-keratinocyte transplantation (MKTP) aim to fix the root cause of vitiligo instead of just treating symptoms.

Previous studies have shown positive results, especially with MKTP, however, more systematic research is needed to fully understand how effective these treatments are and how to improve them.

Researchers of the study examined 48 studies on regenerative medicine for vitiligo by searching major databases such as PubMed, Scopus and Web of Science as of January 30, 2024. They analyzed data using tools like EndNote and Google Sheets and categorized the results to evaluate treatment effectiveness.

The review included 2,186 patients and found promising results for treatments including MKTP and PRP injections. MKTPs achieved over 50% repigmentation within nine months, while PRPs resulted in an average of 58.7% repigmentation, especially when combined with CO2 laser therapy.

Hair follicle cell transplantation also showed strong results, with up to 93.8% of patients experiencing good to excellent outcomes. Minor side effects, such as pain, were reported in 21 studies, but no serious complications occurred.

The study did, however, highlight risks of bias, with 37.21% of studies rated as low risk and 48.84% rated as high risk.

Another issue noted by authors is that most studies, including this one, don’t use clear or reliable methods to measure success, such as how the treatments affect a person’s appearance, quality of life or overall satisfaction over time.

These limitations show that better-designed studies with more focus on patient experiences are needed to fully understand how effective and safe these treatments really are.

Authors of the study suggest future clinical trials should explore newer approaches, such as stromal vascular fraction, exosomes and stem cell-conditioned medium, while including long-term follow-ups and comparisons with traditional treatments to improve care for vitiligo.