Vitiligo Treatment

When we talk of the vitiligo treatment, we must clearly appreciate the fact that Vitiligo is a generalized abnormality of your immune system that results in localized manifestation in the form of white spots in your skin.

It is quite possible to manage white patches in the skin, but there is hardly an acceptable remedy to address the underlying basic problem in general, its mean vitiligo treatment is not as simple.

That is not a big negative however! Vitiligo causes no harm or danger to you except being unacceptable on cosmetic grounds, and local management of the cosmetically significant patches should be sufficient in majority of the cases. It is in fact wise not to waste your time and money in the search of permanent generalized vitiligo treatments.

The following options are available in the treatment of vitiligo

Home Remedies
Alternate treatments
- Herbal Remedies
  1. Oral therapies with natural Psoralen
  2. Topical therapies using natural Psoralen
- Homeopathic
- Ayer Vedic
Prescription Medicine
- Topical steroid therapy
- Psoralen photochemotherapy
Surgical Therapy
- Autologous skin grafts
- Skin grafts using blisters
- Autologous melanocyte transplants
- Totooing

Home Remedies

Majority of the patients will try a home remedy as vitiligo treatment, at least once in their lifetime. They range from simple dietary modifications to the ingestion of psoralens. The benefits are as variable as the nature of remedies. The most effective of all home remedies of course is the use of psoralens, but an unsupervised use of these potent herbs can lead to very unpleasant side effects, which may preclude their further continuation.

Alternate Treatments

Herbal Remedies

Herbal remedies employ various herbal components which contain psoralens. Psoralens is widely used substance for vitiligo treatment.

Psoralens are a group of naturally occurring, substances, which can sensitize human skin to the tanning effect of UV light (Sun light), thereby enhancing pigmentation. It is for this important quality, that they have been used with success for vitiligo treatment since ages.

Psoralens are found naturally in many herbal components. There have been isolated from fig, parsley, West Indian satinwood and celery etc. but seeds of Psoralea corylifolia are the most extensively used source of psoralens in herbal as well as Indian ayurvedic systems of alternate medicine.

1. Oral Psoralen Therapy

It is commonly used even as a domestic remedy for vitiligo treatment, in which the plant Psoralea corylifolia is ingested in various recipes. A common example is soaking the plant parts in water over night and drinking the water in the morning.

The remedy is fairly effective vitiligo treatment when combined with sun exposure, but very few people will continue to use it because of the following reasons.

Extremely unpleasant taste
Large quantities are usually required for oral intake which is very cumbersome
intolerance and side effects in form of nausea and allergic symptoms
Unwanted pigmentation of the whole body
The pigmentation is usually temporary which is lost gradually on cessation of treatment
Precautions: Psoralen is a very potent substance, and should not be used without adequate knowledge in its use.

2. Topical psoralen therapy

Application of the medicine on target skin area is a very wise and convenient alternative to oral ingestion. It can sensitize the skin even locally, which would subsequently gain color on sun exposure.
Various methods of local applications are recommended by different authorities e.g. extracts, oils and concoctions, in which the substance is used alone, or in complex recipes along with other herbal materials.
Anti-Vitiligo which is currently the most potent treatment for vitiligo contains Psoralea corylifolia in the strength of 8% W/W, along with three other constituents which modulate and enhance the action of this photo sensitizer. This combination has yielded almost permanent re-pigmentation compared with the temporary effect of oral psoralen therapy.

Homeopathy

Homeopathic system of medicine like the allopathic medicine, believes vitiligo to be a systemic disease with localized expression. They however differ in the treatment approach, because homeopathy does not offer any localized topical remedy for vitiligo treatment. It aims at detection and restoration of abnormalities in the constitution of the body. This necessarily means that the patient has to be treated and supervised by homeopathic a professional.

Ayurvedic

Ayurvedic is an Indian system of medicine which utilizes herbal, and natural products as well as heavy metals and surgical techniques for healing purposes. The treatment approach for vitiligo is however similar to the herbal approach. Some of the experts also recommend therapeutic vomiting and purgation for vitiligo.

Prescription Medicine

Prescription medicines are those therapies which are regulated by public laws and their sales is generally prohibited without prescription form a medical professional. Their advantages and side effects are scientifically studied and have a large evidence base to back them up.
This system has been relying mainly on the local use of very potent steroids which offer a temporary relief, but their high potential of side effects is prohibitive. After the scientific evidence in favor of psoralens however, these substances are also being exploited in various ways. The main disadvantage of prescription medicines however is that they are very expensive. They also lag in their efficacy because they lack the mastery in using psoralens, which is commonplace for the herbalist.

Topical Steroid Therapy

Steroids are fairly potent suppressor of immunity and can hence be of benefit in auto-immune diseases. They are commonly used in the form of topical creams and ointments during the early stages of vitiligo. Milder steroids are used for the children and potent ones for the adults. They are usually recommended for a period of three months and the effect is generally temporary. Local and systemic side effects may limit the use of these agents for prolonged duration.
Steroids are chemically related to cortisol, the major hormone produced by adrenal glands. They are less potent than psoralen photochemotherapy in the treatment of vitiligo.

Psoralen Photochemotherapy

Surgical Therapy

Autologous skin grafts

The pigment containing skin from one area of the body is surgically shifted to an area where there is no pigment. The success is usually not predictable and the result may be more un-acceptable than the base-line. When the cost, the hassle and the risk of surgical complications like scarring and infection are added, it becomes a fairly risky option to go for vitiligo treatment.

Skin grafts using blisters

It is a variation in the technique of skin grafting, in which blisters on the pigment containing skin are artificially created and then cut out to be transplanted at the required site. The risk of scaring is less than the standard technique, but success in the form of re-pigmentation is not very encouraging.

Autologous melanocyte transplants

The pigment containing skin from one area of the body is surgically shifted to an area where there is no pigment. The procedure has shown some promise, but is not widely available, because it is still in its experimental stages.

Tattooing

Tattooing is not a traditional vitiligo treatment but used as a camouflage technique, it is done with artificial pigments which are deposited into the skin, with the help of traditional tattooing needles or by surgical techniques in present scientific era. The accuracy of color match shall depend upon the skill of the person doing it. It will work best for darker skins, and the color may become lighter with the passage of time. There are risks of serious infections spreading with tattooing through traditional methods. Tattooing should only be carried out by certified and licensed professionals.