Evaluation of Serum Vitamin D Concentration and Blood Eosinophil and Basophil Counts in Patients with Vitiligo:A Cross-sectional Study from Rafsanjan and Zarand,Iran

Objective:Vitiligo is a chronic autoimmune depigmenting skin disorder.In this disease,the destruction of functional melanocytes can lead to reduced or absent pigmentation of the skin.Vitamin D deficiency has been reported in some autoimmune diseases.The association of eosinophils and basophils with autoimmune diseases has also been recently examined.The present study was performed to evaluate the serum vitamin D concentration and blood eosinophil and basophil counts in patients with vitiligo.Methods:Data from 30 patients aged 20 to 40 years with vitiligo and 30 healthy people were collected.Blood samples were obtained to evaluate the serum vitamin D concentration,and eosinophil and basophil counts.The serum vitamin D concentration was measured by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay.Independent t-test was used to compare the quantitative variables between the groups.Results:This descriptive cross-sectional study involved 30 patients with vitiligo.The average serum vitamin D concentration was significantly lower in the case group than in the control group(P=0.01).Furthermore,the mean serum vitamin D concentration was significantly lower in women than in men(P=0.03).The average eosinophil and basophil counts were not significantly different between the case and control groups.Discussion:The results of this study showed that the serum vitamin D concentration is low in patients with vitiligo.However,whether this reduction is a factor in the promotion of vitiligo or occurs after the onset of vitiligo remains unknown.Further studies on the serum vitamin D concentration in patients with vitiligo are needed to clarity this issue and develop effective treatments.