The condition may also be associated with ailments, including thyroid disorders, and may flare up after injury, stress or severe sunburn. Patches occur in all races when pigment cells in the skin, called melanocytes, are destroyed and can no longer produce the pigment melanin, according to the National Vitiligo Foundation of Tyler, Texas, which maintains a clearinghouse for information about the condition. The most common treatment involves a drug called psoralen, taken orally. When followed by exposure to natural sunlight or ultraviolet light, the drug seems to make pigment cells migrate from hair follicles to white areas. Medical authorities recommend avoiding excessive exposure to the sun.
Tanning darkens normal areas, which makes the light ones more prominent.
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