Twelve-month and sixty-month outcomes of noncultured cellular grafting for vitiligo.

BACKGROUND: Noncultured cellular grafting is a known surgical technique for vitiligo.

OBJECTIVE: This study evaluated our center's 12-month repigmentation outcome and its maintenance up to 60 months, factors influencing repigmentation and safety data.

METHODS: Clinicoepidemiologic and repigmentation data were reviewed for patients with vitiligo who had undergone noncultured cellular grafting from March 2006 to December 2012 at the National Skin Center, Singapore.

RESULTS: All 177 patients who received noncultured cellular grafting during the study period were included. For those with available data, good to excellent repigmentation was present in 83% at 60 months. At 12 months, 88% of patients (n = 52) with segmental vitiligo achieved good to excellent repigmentation compared with 71% (n = 55) with nonsegmental vitiligo (P < .05). More patients on collagen dressings (82%) achieved good to excellent repigmentation compared with those who received hyaluronic acid (63%) (P < .05). Sites of lesions and postgrafting phototherapy did not significantly affect repigmentation outcome. Adverse reactions were uncommon and mild.

LIMITATIONS: The study is limited by its retrospective nature, the progressive loss to follow-up of patients, the absence of blinding, and the lack of use of standardized assessment tools.

CONCLUSION: Noncultured cellular grafting was successful in allowing more than 80% of patients to achieve good to excellent repigmentation for at least 60 months.