WEDNESDAY, Oct. 30, 2024 -- The total Vitiligo Area Scoring Index (T-VASI) and the Facial VASI (F-VASI) aids can differentiate between clinically distinct groups in patients with nonsegmental vitiligo, according to a study published online Oct. 30 in JAMA Dermatology.

Khaled Ezzedine, M.D., Ph.D., from the Hôpital Henri Mondor in Paris, and colleagues examined concept validity and measurement performance of the T-VASI and F-VASI in patients with nonsegmental vitiligo in a mixed-methods study. The analysis included adults with nonsegmental vitiligo (T-VASI ≥5 and F-VASI ≥0.5 at baseline).

The psychometric analysis included 164 participants, and the qualitative analysis included 14 participants. The researchers found that in patients with clinically stable vitiligo between baseline and week 4, the intraclass correlation coefficients were 0.98 and 0.99 for T-VASI and F-VASI, respectively, supporting test-retest reliability. Correlations were moderate-to-strong between T-VASI and Total-Physician Global Vitiligo Assessment (PhGVA-T) and between F-VASI and PhGVA-Face. With repigmentation (increasing PhGVA scores), the average baseline and week 24 VASI scores decreased. The least-square mean VASI scores increased with greater Physician's Global Impression of Change-Vitiligo (PhGIC-V)-measured repigmentation. Patients with improved PhGIC-V scores and those with no change or worsened scores had differences in the least-square mean VASI. Meaningful repigmentation between baseline and week 24 was reflected by improvements of 30 percent in T-VASI and 50 percent in F-VASI scores.

"The T-VASI and F-VASI should be appropriate for use in clinical trials treatments for patients with nonsegmental vitiligo," the authors write.

Several authors disclosed ties to pharmaceutical companies, including AbbVie, which provided study funding.