Carolyn Farnsworth, Medical News Today<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Recent evidence has shown that COVID-19 vaccination may correlate with the onset or worsening of vitiligo.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
All data and statistics are based on publicly available data at the time of publication. Some information may be out of date. Visit our coronavirus hub<\/a> for the most recent information on COVID-19.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Vitiligo<\/a> is an autoimmune condition involving skin pigmentation or color loss. A person with vitiligo develops patches of skin with little or no pigmentation across their body.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The\u00a0Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC)<\/a>\u00a0recommend\u00a0COVID-19 vaccination<\/a>\u00a0for all 6 months or older.<\/p>\n\n\n\n COVID-19 vaccines are effective in preventing the disease or minimizing its symptoms. However, these vaccines may cause side effects and trigger certain conditions, such as vitiligo. Despite this, doctors still advise people to receive a vaccination to reduce the risk of severe illness from COVID-19.<\/p>\n\n\n\n <\/p>\n\n\n\n The main COVID-19 vaccinesTrusted Source<\/a> include:<\/p>\n\n\n\n This section will review how these vaccines work and what side effects they may cause.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Both the Pfizer-BioNTech and Moderna vaccines are messenger RNA (RNA) vaccines<\/a>. This type of vaccine delivers artificial genetic material to the body.<\/p>\n\n\n\n This genetic material, mRNA, contains instructions for building a certain protein, which causes an immune response in the body. The body creates antibodies<\/a> in response to this immune activation.<\/p>\n\n\n\n If an individual later contracts SAR-CoV-2 \u2014 the virus that causes COVID-19 \u2014 they will already have antibodies in their body to fight this infection. Antibodies will help them fight SAR-CoV-2 or minimize the symptoms of COVID-19.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Johnson & Johnson\u2019s Janssen vaccine is a vector vaccine<\/a>. This vaccine delivers an artificial, harmless virus to the body. Health experts call this artificial virus a vector virus. After it enters the body, this vector virus also instructs cells to create a new type of protein.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Like in mRNA vaccines, this protein causes an immune response in the body, which produces antibodies that can help fight off SAR-CoV-2 in the future.<\/p>\n\n\n\n In rare instances, individuals have developed certain skin changes, such as vitiligo, after receiving a COVID-19 vaccine.<\/p>\n\n\n\n ScientistsTrusted Source<\/a> believe this occurrence may relate to the effect of vaccination on melanocytes. Melanocytes are the cells responsibleTrusted Source<\/a> for giving skin its color and contain the pigment melanin<\/a>. After a COVID-19 vaccination, new immune cells may attack melanocytes in rare cases, leading to the onset of vitiligo.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Different vaccines across differentTrusted Source<\/a> age groups have triggered the development of vitiligo following the COVID-19 vaccination.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Both a 58-year-old man who received the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine and a 61-year-old woman who had the Moderna vaccine developed vitiligo. These cases emphasize that the COVID-19 vaccines may be among the list of triggers for vitiligo since it causes an extreme inflammatory response.<\/p>\n\n\n\n A 33-year-old woman also\u00a0developed\u00a0vitiligo after the first dose of the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine. Another\u00a0case<\/a>\u00a0of vitiligo occurred in a 13-year-old girl who received the same vaccine. Both of these individuals had a family history of vitiligo.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Researchers\u00a0believe that the COVID-19 vaccine may induce people to develop vitiligo, which already has a genetic susceptibility to the skin condition.<\/p>\n\n\n\n However, this adverse skin reaction should not deter eligible candidates from receiving a vaccination. The risk of these mild and manageable reactions is small<\/a> compared with the possible risks of developing COVID-19.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Although cases of vitiligo worsening after a COVID-19 vaccine are rare, they do occur. Scientists believe that people with a history of the condition have a higher risk of adverse reactions to the vaccine.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Researchers\u00a0identified a 22-year-old man who experienced worsening vitiligo following his first dose of the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine. Two weeks after vaccination, his patches of vitiligo began to worsen.<\/p>\n\n\n\n In this case, the researchers hypothesized that this resulted from antibodies produced by the man\u2019s body in response to his COVID-19 vaccination. These antibodies may compound the effects of melanocyte-attacking antibodies.<\/p>\n\n\n\n In another case<\/a>, a 64-year-old woman developed lichen planus<\/a> after receiving the second dose of the Pzifer vaccine. Lichen planus is a condition that can cause<\/a> rashes across the skin\u2019s surface.<\/p>\n\n\n\n This woman had had vitiligo for 30 years before she developed lichen planus. The rashes due to this condition appeared on the parts of her skin that the vitiligo had affected. As she experienced this after both vaccine doses, researchers believe the vaccine caused it.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Although the vast majority of people who receive a COVID-19 vaccine will not experience worsening vitiligo<\/a>, additional studies are necessary to determine how and why this occurs in rare cases.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Vitiligo symptoms can vary widely between individuals. Some of the most\u00a0common\u00a0symptoms include:<\/p>\n\n\n\n In some rare cases, people with vitiligo may also experience swelling or inflammation in the eyes or ears.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Some individuals with the condition may only develop a few patches or spots throughout the body. Others may experience more generalized patches that affect larger parts of their bodies. In rare cases, vitiligo may cause a total loss of pigment in all skin cells.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Vitiligo occurs similarly in people of all races but may be\u00a0more noticeable\u00a0in individuals with darker skin.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Most people\u00a0who receive a COVID-19 vaccine will experience only mild side effects. These\u00a0possible side effects<\/a> may include:<\/p>\n\n\n\n Usually, these side effects are not severe and resolve within a few days. In extremely rare cases, individuals can experience more\u00a0extreme side effects, such as anaphylaxis, a severe allergic reaction.<\/p>\n\n\n\n For example, a small number of people who received the Johnson and Johnson\u2019s Janssen vaccine developed\u00a0blood clots<\/a>. The\u00a0Food and Drug Administration (FDA)<\/a>\u00a0reported that this occurs at a rate of 3.23 per million doses of vaccine administered.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Cases\u00a0of\u00a0myocarditis\u00a0also occurred more in male adolescents and young adults after the Pfizer-BioNTech or Moderna vaccines. However, most people who received care responded well to treatment.<\/p>\n\n\n\n There is no ideal treatment for vitiligo. A dermatologist<\/a> considers the most suitable<\/a> treatment plan for each person. Doctors may prescribe topical or oral medications or recommend laser treatments for people with the condition.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Ultimately, decisions surrounding vitiligo treatment are highly personal. People with vitiligo may choose not to treat their condition or seek effective alternative treatment options such as dietary changes.<\/p>\n\n\n\n COVID-19 vaccines are highly effective in preventing COVID-19 or minimizing its symptoms.<\/p>\n\n\n\n In extremely rare cases, a COVID-19 vaccine may cause or worsen vitiligo. Further studies must determine why this happens and who might be at risk.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Although doctors cannot cure vitiligo, treatment options are available for individuals with this condition.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Carolyn Farnsworth, Medical News Today Recent evidence has shown that COVID-19 vaccination may correlate with the onset or worsening of vitiligo. Coronavirus data All data and statistics are based on […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":10224,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[849,877,350,914,972,607,1075],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-10221","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-jj-vaccine","category-moderna-vaccine","category-myocarditis","category-pfizer-vaccine","category-vaccine-enhanced-disease","category-vaccine-news","category-vitiligo"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/cov19longhaulfoundation.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/10221","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/cov19longhaulfoundation.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/cov19longhaulfoundation.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cov19longhaulfoundation.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cov19longhaulfoundation.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=10221"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/cov19longhaulfoundation.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/10221\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":10223,"href":"https:\/\/cov19longhaulfoundation.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/10221\/revisions\/10223"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cov19longhaulfoundation.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/10224"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/cov19longhaulfoundation.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=10221"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cov19longhaulfoundation.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=10221"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cov19longhaulfoundation.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=10221"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}How COVID-19 vaccines work <\/a><\/h2>\n\n\n\n
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Pfizer-BioNTech and Moderna<\/h3>\n\n\n\n
Johnson & Johnson\u2019s Janssen<\/h3>\n\n\n\n
Can the COVID-19 vaccine cause vitiligo? <\/a><\/h2>\n\n\n\n
Recent studies of vitiligo cases<\/h3>\n\n\n\n
Can the COVID-19 vaccine worsen vitiligo? <\/a><\/h2>\n\n\n\n
Symptoms<\/a><\/h2>\n\n\n\n
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Possible side effects of COVID-19 vaccination <\/a><\/h2>\n\n\n\n
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Treatment<\/a><\/h2>\n\n\n\n
Summary<\/a><\/h2>\n\n\n\n