Dr. Annalise Abiodun receives Oregon Health & Science University Research Award

Posted on: November 1st, 2019 by Shany Batbold

On October 2, 2019, Dr. Annalise Abiodun presented the results of her research on surgical treatment of medically-recalcitrant vitiligo at Oregon Health and Science University. She was awarded the Jesse Ettelson Award for the Advancement of Dermatology Research.

Vitiligo affects approximately 1-2% of the world population and is the most common acquired disorder of depigmentation. It affects individuals of all skin types, but is most apparent in those with darker complexions. In addition to the cosmetic implications, vitiligo also has psychological consequences due to the associated stigma. Dr. Abiodun observed that there are some patients with vitiligo who did not have adequate regimentation of their skin despite aggressive medical treatments. Given the psychological consequences of vitiligo and how bothered her patients were about their skin, she sought effective surgical procedures to augment medical therapies.

As a resident, she developed a clinical research study to evaluate suction epidermal blister grafting technique using an automated and minimally-invasive tool to surgically treat medically-recalcitrant vitiligo. Suction epidermal blister grafting involves the removal of very thin skin grafts obtained from the epidermis of skin with normal pigmentation, and transferring the grafts to vitiliginous skin.  Her clinical study showed that suction epidermal blister grafting is an effective and well-tolerated treatment option to facilitate repigmentation in patients with stable vitiligo. This technique is most effective in patients who have the segmental subtype of vitiligo.

Dr. Abiodun has a passion for the cosmetic and medical treatment of pigmentation disorders and skin concerns specific to individuals of darker skin types. She is currently a Mohs surgery and advanced cosmetic surgery fellow at the California Skin Institute.