Vitiligo diagnostic methods: from Wood's lamp to artificial intelligence

Vitiligo is a disease with multifactorial etiology characterized by areas of depigmentation of the skin resulting from melanocyte loss. The disease follows a benign course; however, it significantly affects patients' quality of life. One of the key aspects in practical dermatology is the objective assessment of skin status for the purposes of diagnosis, evaluation of therapeutic efficacy, and monitoring disease changes. To date, there is no unified standard for the diagnosis of vitiligo. Nevertheless, it is essential for practicing clinicians to have access to effective diagnostic tools for managing such patients. This review describes the main contemporary non-invasive and objective methods for the diagnosis of vitiligo, including their roles in diagnosis, severity assessment, and monitoring treatment response, as well as the benefits and limitations of each technique. Particular attention is given to the use of artificial intelligence, which enables automated assessment of dermatoscopic patterns and minimizes the impact of human factors. KEYWORDS: vitiligo diagnosis, Wood's lamp, UV dermatoscopy, spectrometry, colorimetry, confocal laser microscopy, optical coherence tomography, UV photo-documentation, artificial intelligence. FOR CITATION: Petunina V.V., Vasenova V.Yu., Khamaganova I.V., Polesco I.V. Vitiligo diagnostic methods: from Wood's lamp to artificial intelligence. Russian Medical Inquiry. 2025;9(6):320–326 (in Russ.). DOI: 10.32364/2587-6821-2025-9-6-4