Intralesional methotrexate in the treatment of localized vitiligo: A pilot study.

BACKGROUND/

OBJECTIVES

Vitiligo is an immune-mediated skin disorder that targets epidermal melanocytes leading to the appearance of depigmented skin patches. Different treatment modalities have been reported with varied efficacy. We tried to evaluate the safety and efficacy of intralesional methotrexate in treating localized areas of vitiligo.

METHODS

Thirty participants with localized patches of vitiligo were recruited. They were treated with intralesional injections of methotrexate every 2 weeks for a maximum of six sessions. At the end of the study, the degree of repigmentation was categorized into: excellent improvement (>75% repigmentation), good improvement (50%-75% repigmentation), fair improvement (25%-50% repigmentation) and poor improvement (<25% repigmentation).

RESULTS

We included 7 males (23.3%) and 23 females (76.7%). Their mean age was 33.6 ± 8.6 years. The duration of the disease ranged from 1 to 22 years. Four patients had a family history of vitiligo. At the end of the study, there was a highly statistically significant improvement (p < 0.001) after treatment regarding repigmentation.

CONCLUSIONS

This study showed that intralesional methotrexate is a safe and effective treatment option for patients with localized vitiligo lesions. Further studies on a larger scale are needed to evaluate the long-term effects of treatment and detect the ideal dose to be injected.