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Author:

Gary W. Cole, MD, FAAD

Gary W. Cole, MD, FAAD

Dr. Cole is board certified in dermatology. He obtained his BA degree in bacteriology, his MA degree in microbiology, and his MD at the University of California, Los Angeles. He trained in dermatology at the University of Oregon, where he completed his residency.

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Editor:

William C. Shiel Jr., MD, FACP, FACR

William C. Shiel Jr., MD, FACP, FACR

Dr. Shiel received a Bachelor of Science degree with honors from the University of Notre Dame. There he was involved in research in radiation biology and received the Huisking Scholarship. After graduating from St. Louis University School of Medicine, he completed his Internal Medicine residency and Rheumatology fellowship at the University of California, Irvine. He is board-certified in Internal Medicine and Rheumatology.

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There are a variety of surgical options to treat vitiligo. They basically all involve transplanting the patient's normal melanocytes into areas of vitiligo. This can be accomplished by taking small "pinch" grafts or split thickness grafts of normal skin and placing them into suitably prepared recipient sites. If all goes well, the melanocytes gradually grow out of the grafts and repopulate the surrounding involved skin. At certain research institutions, melanocytes from normal skin can be harvested and grown in tissue culture and then placed in suitably prepared recipient sites. Although somewhat cosmetically acceptable, even successful surgical outcomes are nevertheless distinguishable from normal skin.

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