title: Prevalence of vitiligo and associated comorbidities in Korea.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  Vitiligo prevalence and its associated comorbidities rate have been reported variably among different populations. We aimed to determine the prevalence of vitiligo in Korea along with the baseline rate of comorbidities and compared the risks to the general population using hospital visit information of the total population in Korea.
  
  
  METHODS
  We assessed demographic characteristics of vitiligo patients in Korean population from 2009 to 2011 in a nationwide data from Health Insurance Review Assessment Service. Patients who had at least one visit to Korea's primary, secondary, or tertiary referral hospitals with International Classification of Diseases, 10th Revision, Clinical Modification diagnosis code for vitiligo were identified. As a supplementary study, comorbidities associated with vitiligo were selected for further review to calculate relative risks compared to the general population.
  
  
  RESULTS
  The annual prevalence of vitiligo determined by hospital-visiting rate in Korea was 0.12% to 0.13% over a three year period. In sync with other previous epidemiological studies, there was bimodal distribution among the age groups and no difference between genders. Also, vitiligo in Korean population was associated with various autoimmune/non-autoimmune diseases such as thyroiditis, atopic dermatitis, and psoriasis.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  This study was by far the most comprehensive review on prevalence of vitiligo using a data of total population in Korea. The prevalence is within a range of those reported in previous literatures, and increased risk of comorbidities such as thyroid diseases and psoriasis in vitiligo might aid clinicians in the initial work up of vitiligo patients and concurrent follow ups.
authors.affiliation: Department of Dermatology, Severance Hospital, Cutaneous Biology Research Institute, Yonsei University College of Medicine, Seoul, Korea.
authors.forename: Hemin
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Lee
authors.affiliation: Department of Dermatology, Kyung Hee University School of Medicine, Seoul, Korea.
authors.forename: Mu-Hyoung
authors.initials: MH
authors.lastname: Lee
authors.affiliation: Department of Dermatology, Sungkyunkwan University School of Medicine, Seoul, Korea.
authors.forename: Dong Youn
authors.initials: DY
authors.lastname: Lee
authors.affiliation: Department of Dermatology, Ajou University School of Medicine, Suwon, Korea.
authors.forename: Hee Young
authors.initials: HY
authors.lastname: Kang
authors.affiliation: Department of Dermatology, Dong-A University College of Medicine, Busan, Korea.
authors.forename: Ki Ho
authors.initials: KH
authors.lastname: Kim
authors.affiliation: Department of Dermatology, Inha University School of Medicine, Incheon, Korea.
authors.forename: Gwang Seong
authors.initials: GS
authors.lastname: Choi
authors.affiliation: Department of Dermatology, Inha University School of Medicine, Incheon, Korea.
authors.forename: Jeonghyun
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Shin
authors.affiliation: Department of Dermatology, CHA Bundang Medical Center, CHA University, Bundang, Korea.
authors.forename: Hee Jung
authors.initials: HJ
authors.lastname: Lee
authors.affiliation: Department of Dermatology, CHA Bundang Medical Center, CHA University, Bundang, Korea.
authors.forename: Dong Hyun
authors.initials: DH
authors.lastname: Kim
authors.affiliation: Whiteline Skin Clinic, Changwon, Korea.
authors.forename: Tae Heung
authors.initials: TH
authors.lastname: Kim
authors.affiliation: Department of Dermatology, Dongguk University Ilsan Hospital, Dongguk University Graduate School of Medicine, Goyang, Korea.
authors.forename: Ai-Young
authors.initials: AY
authors.lastname: Lee
authors.affiliation: Department of Dermatology, Chonnam National University Medical School, Gwangju, Korea.
authors.forename: Seung Chul
authors.initials: SC
authors.lastname: Lee
authors.affiliation: Department of Dermatology, Soonchunhyang University College of Medicine, Seoul, Korea.
authors.forename: Sanghoon
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Lee
authors.affiliation: Department of Dermatology, School of Medicine, Gachon University, Incheon, Korea.
authors.forename: Kyoung Wan
authors.initials: KW
authors.lastname: Kim
authors.affiliation: Korea Institute of Vitiligo Research & Drs. Woo and Hann's Skin Center, Seoul, Korea.
authors.forename: Seung-Kyung
authors.initials: SK
authors.lastname: Hann
authors.affiliation: Department of Dermatology, Bucheon St. Mary's Hospital, College of Medicine, The Catholic University of Korea, Bucheon, Korea. cjpark777smp@gmail.com.
authors.forename: Chul Jong
authors.initials: CJ
authors.lastname: Park
authors.affiliation: Department of Dermatology, Severance Hospital, Cutaneous Biology Research Institute, Yonsei University College of Medicine, Seoul, Korea. oddung93@yuhs.ac.
authors.forename: Sang Ho
authors.initials: SH
authors.lastname: Oh
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D001327:Autoimmune Diseases / Q000453:epidemiology* / Q000276:immunology; D015897:Comorbidity; D003922:Diabetes Mellitus, Type 1 / Q000453:epidemiology; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D011159:Population Surveillance; D015995:Prevalence; D056910:Republic of Korea / Q000453:epidemiology; D012959:Socioeconomic Factors; D013959:Thyroid Diseases / Q000453:epidemiology; D014820:Vitiligo / Q000453:epidemiology*
keywords: Vitiligo; autoimmune diseases; epidemiology; prevalence
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