OBJECTIVE: To study the association of vitiligo with ocular and auditory abnormalities.
METHODS: This case-control study was carried out on 40 patients with vitiligo and 20 healthy controls (HCs). All patients and HCs underwent auditory examination (otoscopic examination and immittance audiometry to assess middle ear pressure and exclude tympanic membrane perforation; pure tone audiometry to assess peripheral hearing sensitivity; and transient evoked otoacoustic emissions to assess central hearing ability) and standard ocular examination including visual acuity test, slit lamp biomicroscopy and optical coherence tomography.
RESULTS: Compared with controls, there was a significantly higher prevalence of hearing loss and ocular abnormalities in patients with vitiligo but no significant difference in visual acuity.
CONCLUSIONS: Vitiligo is a systemic disease that can be associated with impairment of melanocyte function organs other than the skin, including the eyes and ears. The function of auditory melanocytes is related to the hearing process and thus their destruction could lead to hearing impairment. By contrast, ocular melanocytes do not play a direct role in detection or transfer of visual information, and thus should not affect vision. Vitiligo may be associated with ocular abnormalities and hearing loss.