What is Vitiligo?
Vitiligo is a loss of skin pigment that causes white spots or patches to appear on the skin. No one knows exactly why this happens, but it affects people of all races, many of them children and adolescents. It is not medically dangerous. It's not the same as skin cancer. It is not an infection like MRSA. AIt's also not infectious, so you can't catch it from another person. In fact, most people with vitiligo are just as healthy as everyone else. The long-term condition where the skin starts losing its pigment, where skin will become patches and converted into pale white color and appear in different parts of the body. The hair on the skin and inner parts of the mouth and nose also convert into pale white color. Firstly the patches begin on the outer part of the skin that is exposed to sunlight. According to Wikipedia, almost 1% of the world’s population is affected by Vitiligo.
Types
Segmental:
Segmental is nonuniform Vitiligo and spreads rapidly, it is more constant and stable when compared to Non-segmental vitiligo. It is very rare and is seen in only 10% of the cases. It mainly occurs in the areas where the skin is attached to nerves. It mainly occurs to the people who are in younger age
Non-Segmental:
If the white patches are formed uniformly on the body is called Non-segmental vitiligo. This is common in 90% of cases. The patches appear uniformly on both sides and mainly occurs on the body parts like Neck, nose, face, hands that are exposed to the sun. The Non-segmental vitiligo is further divided into 5 types:
Generalized:
The patches occur on the body which has no particular size and shape and can occur in any part of the body. This is the most common type.
Acrofacial:
In this type of vitiligo, the patches occur mainly on the toes, fingers, and hands.
Mucosal:
If the white patches occur around mucous membranes and lips is called Mucosal.
Universal:
If the vitiligo spreads almost every part of the body then it is Universal.
Focal:
The white patches occur discontinuously on a body then it is focal, it is mostly seen in children.
Causes
The changes in the immune system are considered the main cause of vitiligo. In most cases, it occurs genetically the hair color and skin color are determined by melanocytes which generate melanin. If that melanocyte stops producing melanin then it occurs. In some cases, sunburns are the cause of it. People with dark skin are more affected by vitiligo Industrial chemicals will also affect the production of melanin that will cause vitiligo. The major symptom is white patches on the skin, change in color in the inner layer of the eyeball. It can start at any age but is often seen in people who are below 20. The white patches will be irregular and cause irritation, discomfort, and dryness in the skin. The symptoms are different for different people like some people will be affected only by some parts of the body whereas some are affected on two sides of the body and for some people, & is limited for only one particular part.
Treatment
Vitiligo does not have a permanent cure, the treatment is only to stop spreading it. Treatment works better if it started at an early stage( perhaps before 2 or 3 months after starting). If the white spots are developing slowly then we can treat them very fast than other cases. If the skin parts contain more hair then there are chances of curing is high when compared to the skin parts with less hair because the pigments in the hair will migrate to the upper surface of the skin to repigment the skin. The parts of skin that are recovered very fast are Face, Chest, Arms, legs. And hands, wrist, feet, hips have fewer chances of recovery after treatment. Types of treatments:
- Non-Cultured Epidermal cellular drafting
- Steroid Creams
- Uv therapy
- Excimer laser
- Depigmentation
- Micro tattooing
Preventions
Despite any evidence, some people prevented vitiligo by following some tips.
- Drinking a lot of water can boost the body’s immune system that can prevent it.
- Having green leafy vegetables, fruits like bananas, apples can prevent it.
- To prevent the formation of white patches avoid consuming alcohol, coffee, fish, red meat.
- Consuming food that contains vitamin B, C, amino acids and Folic acids can prevent these white patches.
- The skin pigment cells are destroyed when the skin is affected by wounds, burns, sunburns. Avoiding deep skin woods and burns will prevent it.
