Actress Mamata Mohandas revealed on Instagram that she is suffering from an autoimmune disease called vitiligo. Prior to this, Mamata successfully battled cancer and Hodgkin’s Lymphoma.
What is vitiligo??
According to Dr. Dilip Gude of Yashoda Hospital, Hyderabad, vitiligo is a chronic autoimmune disorder that causes loss of pigment or color in the skin.
“This happens when the melanocyte – the pigment-producing skin cells – are attacked and destroyed, causing the skin to turn milky-white,” he said.
symptoms
A common symptom of this disorder is white patches appearing on both hands or both knees and on both sides of the body. Rarely, there may be a rapid loss of color or pigment, and the patches may become more widespread, he said.
In this disorder, the hair turns white in areas where the skin loses pigmentation, which can occur anywhere on the scalp, eyebrows, eyelashes, beard and body hair, Dr Goode points out. Mucous membranes such as the inside of the mouth or nose can also be affected by vitiligo.
What causes?
Vitiligo is an autoimmune disease in which the body’s immune system attacks and destroys melanocytes. Genetics and family history play a strong role in causing vitiligo. External factors such as sun, stress or exposure to certain chemicals can trigger or worsen vitiligo, the expert added.
Prevention and treatment
There is currently no complete cure for vitiligo. But with treatment, you can restore pigmentation and prevent pigmentation without affecting too much skin. Dr. Goode shared some treatment options that say staying out of the sun is one of the best ways to prevent discoloration and damage.
treatment
Phototherapy with UVB has been shown to stop or slow the progression of active vitiligo. It is most effective when used with corticosteroids or calcineurin inhibitors.
Psoralen and Light TheraB
This treatment combines a plant-derived substance called psoralen with photochemotherapy.
Removing the remaining color
This treatment may be an option if your vitiligo is widespread and other treatments haven’t worked. In this a depigmentation agent is applied to the unaffected areas of the skin. It gradually lightens the skin so that it blends into the discolored areas.
This treatment is done once or twice a day for nine months or more.
surgery
If light therapy and medications don’t work, some people with persistent vitiligo may have surgery.
Apart from this, techniques such as skin grafting (Skin grafting), blister grafting (Blister grafting), cellular suspension transplant, drug that stimulates the color producing cells (melanocytes) called afamelanotide aim to balance the skin tone by restoring the color.
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