Epidermal Grafting Using the Tops of Suction Blisters in the Treatment of Vitiligo

Fourteen patients with nondermatomal and 31 patients with segmental vitiligo were treated by epidermal grafting using the tops of suction blisters. Epidermis of the vitiliginous area was removed by a blister induced by methoxsalen plus ultraviolet A, and the tops of suction blisters were placed next to one another, resembling paving stones. Reepithelialization was completed in about two weeks, and skin color normalized in most cases about half a year later. Repigmentation persisted in most cases of segmental vitiligo, whereas loss of pigmentation occurred again in nonsegmental vitiligo. Scars were not observed on either the graft site or the donor site.