Vitiligo in children

One of the most mysterious diseases that children can suffer from is vitiligo. Mankind has known about him for a very long time, but until now the disease belongs to the category of poorly studied, and therefore mysterious. You will learn about what vitiligo is, what to do with this pathology by reading this article.

About the disease

In the old days, vitiligo was called "dog", thereby comparing sick people with dogs. In the form of a child with vitiligo, there is nothing of the four-legged. Unless light spots appear on the skin, which can very conditionally resemble those of animals.

Vitiligo is a skin ailment in which light spots devoid of melanin appear on the skin. They can grow in size, unite, "spread out". The nature of the disease is shrouded in mystery, although doctors have some assumptions. The disease is always chronic.

If hair grows on the affected area, then they also tend to discolor, become milky white. Most often, light spots appear on the hands, knees and elbows. Perhaps these are the most traumatic areas of the human body. However, absolutely any area of the skin can be affected.
Some spots may disappear, others may appear elsewhere. Sometimes the symptoms leave a person for a while, and then return.

About a strange disease that does not cause any troubles (besides aesthetic), they knew even in Ancient Egypt. In the Middle Ages, this was considered a sign of witchcraft, and a little later in Europe, doctors even had to prove empirically that vitiligo is not leprosy, and patients with white spots should not be isolated from others, since they do not pose a danger.

Interesting fact: the legend of pop music Michael Jackson suffered from vitiligo all his life, because of this, his skin was rapidly discolored. His son inherited this feature of the body.

The now popular model Winnie Harlow is also sick with this disease.

Vitiligo to one degree or another is present in about 8% of all inhabitants of the Earth, regardless of age, gender and race. However, the first half of life accounts for more than half of all cases. A quarter of the sick are children. Moreover, the disease can manifest itself in newborns, infants and adolescents.

This ailment is quite common, but doctors are still studying the disease, but they inevitably face the problem of understanding the processes of insufficient synthesis of melanin in the body. They know a lot about synthesis, but one can only guess about the reasons why the well-functioning work of melanocytes (special skin cells) fails. While nature is not going to reveal this secret.

Symptoms and signs

There is only one symptom of vitiligo - light fragments on the skin. At first they are small, at the initial stage they differ only by half a tone from the main skin color. Over time, the spots become white, grow, acquire fairly well-defined boundaries.

Whitening always begins imperceptibly, gradually, sometimes with the so-called pink vitiligo - the appearance of pink spots, which then also necessarily brighten.

Sometimes white spots are located symmetrically - on two arms or on two parts of the back. However, symmetry cannot be considered a regularity, since there are quite a few cases of the appearance of single discolored fragments.

The spots do not itch, do not hurt, do not itch, do not become inflamed and do not in any way affect the condition of the child, his development and abilities. They bring only psychological discomfort - and only to those children who have white fragments in a prominent place (for example, on the face).

Causes of occurrence

As already mentioned, the causes of vitiligo are practically not studied, there is no convincing scientific evidence for any of the theories. This primarily concerns the hereditary factor. Congenital vitiligo as a diagnosis is absent in all medical encyclopedias, since scientific minds are still arguing about whether depigmentation is transmitted from father to son and beyond.

Many doctors are inclined to believe that only a certain immune code, a relative predisposition, and not the disease itself is transmitted genetically.

Of the most probable reasons, it is customary to indicate:

strong stressful situations, severe emotional distress (it is not entirely clear how to apply this reason to newborns and infants);
friction of a certain skin area, constant and rather long;
excessive dose of solar radiation;
skin contact with chemicals, poisons, phenols;
skin contact with synthetic fabrics.

The connection between discolored skin spots and diseases of internal organs (for example, thyroid gland, liver, intestines) has no scientific confirmation to date. The number of people with vitiligo and diseases is approximately equal to the number of people with only vitiligo and no other pathologies.

It is because of the lack of information that it is not very difficult for doctors to make a diagnosis, but it is not easy to give at least some predictions, to understand whether vitiligo will be stable or progressive, how much of the skin will become discolored.

When diagnosing, the doctor will definitely need to exclude other causes of skin lightening - leukopathy, syphilitic leukoderma, parapsoriasis, congenital albinism. This can be done by visual examination (by illuminating a fragment of the skin with an ultraviolet lamp), as well as some laboratory tests of blood and scraping of epithelial cells.

Treatment

On this issue, the opinions of doctors again differ. To date, there is no effective and unambiguous treatment for white skin spots. However, in medicine there is a certain standard scheme that the doctor will prescribe to the child after the baby is diagnosed.

No one will advise any specific preparations, ointments or techniques, since they are not in nature. However, a certain comprehensive approach in therapy, which has developed over many decades, sometimes shows quite decent results - the spots decrease, some of them return to their normal color.

Children after 12 years of age are prescribed PUVA therapy. This is a combination of ultraviolet radiation in the long spectrum with the simultaneous use of photosensitizers - drugs that improve the skin's sensitivity to ultraviolet rays. Apply "Meloxin", "Meladinin", "Trioxaralen". The pigment (not fully, but only 60-70%) appears on the white areas of the skin after more than 200 such sessions, not earlier.

Phototherapy is also prescribed for younger children, but not with long waves of UV rays, but with medium-range waves, with the use of Prednisolone corticosteroids. Children after one year are often prescribed Elidel ointment.

As part of systemic therapy, the doctor will definitely consider the possibility of prescribing immunomodulators, agents that have an effect on the normalization of liver function, some digestive enzymes (just in case). Vitamins are prescribed - B6, B12, B1, C, E, as well as zinc and copper preparations. So medicine is trying to inflict a therapeutic "blow" on all possible (though not proven) causes of the disease.

You can try to get rid of vitiligo and surgically. During a small manipulation, doctors will try to transplant active melanocyte cells into the discolored epidermis. Results are not always available, but you can try.

Tips

Children with vitiligo should not be in the open sun for too long, since light spots on their skin burn much faster, the skin in this place can then thicken.

The child's nutrition must necessarily include foods that have a very high content of vitamins B, C, E. These include figs, parsley, buckwheat, celery, rose hips, beef, cheese, peas, and shrimp.

On the Internet, parents who really want to quickly rid their child of discolored skin fragments can find information about an allegedly effective recipe based on the preparation of a baby cream with aspirin (for application to the affected areas).

Please note that it is suggested to dissolve aspirin in vinegar and then apply to the skin. This method is definitely not suitable for babies! The acid can cause chemical burns and severe allergic reactions. It is not worth the risk, because the effectiveness of acetylsalicylic acid (aspirin) for vitiligo has not been proven by any doctor, has not been substantiated in any way, and has never even been recorded. Vitiligo is not a contagious disease, it is safe for others.