Vitiligo improvement in a patient with ankylosing spondylitis treated with infliximab

Dermatology. 2008;216(3):234-5. doi: 10.1159/000112932. Epub 2008 Jan 9.

Abstract

Ankylosing spondylitis (AS) is a disabling disease affecting the enthesis and joints of the spine and peripheral sites. Tumour necrosis factor alpha (TNF-alpha) is a proinflammatory mediator which plays a significant role in the pathogenesis of AS. Infliximab (a chimeric monoclonal antibody which blocks the activity of TNF-alpha) is one of the most effective therapies of AS thus far. Vitiligo is a depigmenting disorder of the skin of unknown aetiology affecting 0.5-1% of the population. Here we describe the effect of infliximab on vitiligo in a patient with AS.

Publication types

  • Case Reports

MeSH terms

  • Adult
  • Antibodies, Monoclonal / therapeutic use*
  • Humans
  • Immunologic Factors / therapeutic use*
  • Infliximab
  • Male
  • Spondylitis, Ankylosing / complications
  • Spondylitis, Ankylosing / drug therapy
  • Tumor Necrosis Factor-alpha / antagonists & inhibitors*
  • Vitiligo / complications
  • Vitiligo / drug therapy*
  • Vitiligo / physiopathology

Substances

  • Antibodies, Monoclonal
  • Immunologic Factors
  • Tumor Necrosis Factor-alpha
  • Infliximab