No Association between Vitiligo and Obesity: A Case-Control Study

Abstract

Objective: The purpose of this study was to investigate the relationship between vitiligo and body mass index (BMI) to assess the possible association between vitiligo and obesity.

Subjects and methods: This was a case-control study on a total of 400 participants, i.e., 200 patients with vitiligo and 200 healthy volunteers. Medical assessments were performed by dermatologists using the modified Vitiligo European Task Force form. The height and weight of all of the participants were measured and used to calculate the BMI. Data were analyzed using multivariate logistic regression models. Adjustment for age and gender was carried out preliminarily in the case-control analysis, whereas a forward stepwise selection algorithm was used to assess which independent factors were associated with a BMI ≥30 or a BMI ≤18.5.

Results: Comparison of the vitiligo and control groups revealed the absence of a significant association. The multivariate analysis of factors associated with a high BMI (≥30) in vitiligo patients showed a significant association between a high BMI and a sudden onset of vitiligo (p = 0.021; OR = 3.83; 95% CI 1.22-11.99) and the presence of inflammation and pruritus (p = 0.031; OR = 3.26; 95% CI 1.11-9.57). No significant association was observed in the analysis of factors associated with a low BMI (≤18.5) in vitiligo patients.

Conclusion: In this study, vitiligo did not appear to be associated with a high BMI; obesity might not be a risk factor for vitiligo, in contrast to most autoimmune diseases which are significantly associated with obesity.

Keywords: Body mass index; Case-control study; Obesity; Vitiligo.