Vitiligo is a disorder characterized by patchy loss of skin pigmentation due to immune attacks on melanocytes. While there is no significant proof or evidence for this, many doctors believe that it can be caused by defects in many genes. Variations in genes that are part of the immune system or part of melanocytes have both been associated with vitiligo. The immune system genes are associated with other autoimmune disorders.
Vitiligo, also known as leucoderma, is a skin disorder in which part of the skin takes on a ‘bleached’, pale appearance. The word is pronounced with the stress on the last ‘i’, making it sound something like ‘vittle-AIgo’