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How Is Vitiligo Over Elbow Treated?

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Posted on Thu, 16 Jan 2014
Question: Hi,what is actual treatment given to vitiligo over lips(not on lips) in 11 years,as in can topical psoralen be added with topical steroid ,,(2) how is vitiligo over elbow treated in a 11 years old,as in is topical psoralen applied daily in 11 years old,(3) can even a small spot of vitiligo be diagnosed with wood lamp
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Answered by Dr. Sanjay Kumar Kanodia (1 hour later)
Brief Answer: Kindly see the suggestions below Detailed Answer: Hi, Welcome and thanks for posting your query to healthcare magic. I can understand your concern for vitiligo in 11 year boy. Our skin daily produces pigment form the special cells called as melanocytes. In vitiligo These cells stops secreting melanin. Vitiligo occurs when the cells that produce melanin die or no longer produce melanin. This causes slowly enlarging white patches on our skin. There is no exact cause identified and defined but it is considered to be an auto-immune disorder where there is formation of antibodies which works against the melanocytes. The diagnosis of the vitiligo requires no any important instruments or tests and can be diagnosed by simple naked eye examination only. But in some cases where there is confusion then wood's lamp examination reveals the exact nature of hypo-pigmentation due to vitiligo or any other cause. SO wood's lamp examination can be one of the most definite instrument in bit confusing cases. Our goal of treatment is return the normal color by stopping or slowing the progression of pigment loss. There are multiple ways of treatment such as Steroid creams, Psoralen photochemotherapy, topical psoralens and immunomodulator agents such as tacrolimus cream or pimecrolimus cream locally. If the lesion is spreading one needs oral steroids for few months. IN your query, I can get that there is vitiligo over lips and elbow in 11 year old boy. Topical psoralens with steroids are the choice of treatment in children and young adults where we do not want to give any oral treatment. It is one of the best and time tested treatment for any type of vitiligo. The only part is that it should be applied under dermatological supervision only as topical psoralens can cause irritation and redness. It takes few months of period to get good pigmentation. If I were the treating dermatologist then would have opted a topical steroid such as fluticasone cream and immuno-modulator such as tacrolimus cream or pimecrolimus cream. Hope these informations will help you. If you have any further query I will be happy to help. Regards. Dr Sanjay Kumar Kanodia MD (Dermatology)
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Above answer was peer-reviewed by : Dr. Chakravarthy Mazumdar
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Dr. Sanjay Kumar Kanodia

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How Is Vitiligo Over Elbow Treated?

Brief Answer: Kindly see the suggestions below Detailed Answer: Hi, Welcome and thanks for posting your query to healthcare magic. I can understand your concern for vitiligo in 11 year boy. Our skin daily produces pigment form the special cells called as melanocytes. In vitiligo These cells stops secreting melanin. Vitiligo occurs when the cells that produce melanin die or no longer produce melanin. This causes slowly enlarging white patches on our skin. There is no exact cause identified and defined but it is considered to be an auto-immune disorder where there is formation of antibodies which works against the melanocytes. The diagnosis of the vitiligo requires no any important instruments or tests and can be diagnosed by simple naked eye examination only. But in some cases where there is confusion then wood's lamp examination reveals the exact nature of hypo-pigmentation due to vitiligo or any other cause. SO wood's lamp examination can be one of the most definite instrument in bit confusing cases. Our goal of treatment is return the normal color by stopping or slowing the progression of pigment loss. There are multiple ways of treatment such as Steroid creams, Psoralen photochemotherapy, topical psoralens and immunomodulator agents such as tacrolimus cream or pimecrolimus cream locally. If the lesion is spreading one needs oral steroids for few months. IN your query, I can get that there is vitiligo over lips and elbow in 11 year old boy. Topical psoralens with steroids are the choice of treatment in children and young adults where we do not want to give any oral treatment. It is one of the best and time tested treatment for any type of vitiligo. The only part is that it should be applied under dermatological supervision only as topical psoralens can cause irritation and redness. It takes few months of period to get good pigmentation. If I were the treating dermatologist then would have opted a topical steroid such as fluticasone cream and immuno-modulator such as tacrolimus cream or pimecrolimus cream. Hope these informations will help you. If you have any further query I will be happy to help. Regards. Dr Sanjay Kumar Kanodia MD (Dermatology)