Correlation between Gastrointestinal Upset and Adherence to Persian Medicine Dietary Recommendations in Patients with Vitiligo, a Case Control Study

Background: Vitiligo is a chronic disease associated with depigmentation of areas of the body caused by structural or functional damage to melanocytes. Damage is caused by interactions between the immune system and oxidative stress. In Persian medicine, the concept of "Barass or Pissi" includes a set of skin diseases that also include vitiligo. In Persian medicine, the disease is caused by the accumulation of “Balgham” in the body. So, it is emphasized on the modification of diet in order to eliminate Balgham and therefore treat vitiligo. Methods: In this case-control study, 200 vitiligo cases and 200 control cases were enrolled with a random sampling method. Participants contain a group of patients with vitiligo from the Dermatology Clinic of Shahid Faghihi Hospital of the Shiraz University of Medical Sciences and a control group who were referred to this clinic for other skin diseases or beauty purposes. Questionnaires comparing the severity of gastrointestinal symptoms in relation to adherence to Persian medicine recommendations were considered as nutritional reminders in two groups. Data evaluated using statistical methods. Finding: The case group (P-value <0.001; 8.25 ± 27.16 versus 31.8 ± 10.47) was significantly less adherent to Persian medicine recommendations than the control group (p> 0.05). However, two groups did not have significant difference in gastrointestinal upset scores (P-value = 0.105, 14.09 ± 14.84 versus 12.62 ± 11.71). In the case group, the level of adherence to the recommendations of Persian medicine decreased significantly according to the lower education level (P-value = 0.017; R = -0.194). Also, patients, they have been diagnosed more recently had more adherence to Persian medicine dietary recommendations (P-value = 0.002; R = - 0.247). Conclusion: In this study, the rate of adherence to the Persian medical recommendations in patients with vitiligo was significantly lower than the control group. On this basis, we should concentrate on increasing adherence of the patient to medical recommendations to have better results in research and treatment.

کلیدواژه ها:

Vitiligo ، Digestive disorders ، Nutritional measures