Comparative Study of Surgical Treatment of Vitiligo: Microneedling Versus Microneedling With Suspension of Uncultured Epidermal Cells

Background: Vitiligo is characterized by a depigmentation acquired with partial or total loss of melanocytes from the epidermis, causing great psychosocial impact. Several therapeutic modalities have been proposed for its treatment and surgical treatments have been shown to be promising, especially in recalcitrant cases. The technique of epidermal rasping grafting, a variant of the punch micrografts technique, shows high repigmentation rates and does not require high cost technology. Objective: The objective of this project is to perform a comparative study for the surgical treatment of vitiligo, in which the same patient (N = 10) will receive, in symmetrical acrylic areas, only dermabrasion with a micro needling of 0.25 mm or dermabrasion using micro needling followed of the cell suspension application (melanocytes and uncultured keratinocytes). Methodology: In the donor area (scalp) the healthy tissue will be removed. This tissue will be placed in a sterile container with physiological saline and fragmented with delicate scissors for about 20 minutes until homogeneous consistency of the material is obtained. After the enzymatic digestion of epidermal cells of the dermis, it will isolate melanocytes and keratinocytes that will be placed in the recipient area. After 15 days of the surgical procedure, patients will start the phototherapy UVB-NB sessions (twice a week). The patients will be evaluated about the pain during the procedure, the improvement of injuries of vitiligo and the vitiligo-specific quality-of-life instrument (VitiQoL Vitqol Index) will be applied after and before the treatment. Conclusion: The technique of grafting by epidermal scrap shows high rates of repigmentation and does not require high cost technology, which motivated us, in this study, corroborating the literature and helping to disseminate this technique.