Things to know about vitiligo in children

Vitiligo in children is a skin disease that easily affects psychology. Therefore, many parents are concerned about how to cure this disease completely.

Vitiligo is a fairly common disease, affecting 1-2% of the population, can be found in all ages, all genders, but most commonly in children and adolescents. So what is vitiligo and what are the ways to treat it? Let aFamilyToday Health follow up on the following shares to get answers to this problem.

Vitiligo in children

Vitiligo is a skin disorder that affects the melanocytes, a cell that is responsible for the production of melanin skin pigment. In vitiligo, the melanocytes are destroyed and no pigment is produced. This condition causes the baby's skin to appear white spots or patches because there are no pigmented cells or there are but have stopped working. Vitiligo has 3 types:

Local vitiligo: white spots appear only in small areas of the skin.

Diffuse vitiligo: This is the most common form of vitiligo, the symptoms appear on both sides of the body, spreading and symmetrical.

Broken vitiligo: Appears only on one side of the body but can still affect large areas of skin.

Vitiligo in children usually does not pose a health hazard. This is not a form of skin cancer , it is not an infection, and certainly not a contagious disease. In fact, most children with this disease grow up to be healthy as normal children.

Although vitiligo spots can appear anywhere on the body, most will appear in:

Areas of the skin that are often exposed to the sun such as the face or hands

Folded areas like the elbows, knees, or groin

Skin areas around parts such as the eyes, nostrils, navel, and genital area. 

In addition to white spots, vitiligo children also have other symptoms such as premature graying hair or loss of lip color as pigmented cells are also found in these areas.

The cause of vitiligo in children

There is a lot of research into what causes vitiligo. Some experts think it might be an autoimmune disorder (the immune system mistakenly attacks healthy melanocytes). Others believe it may be genetic because an estimated 30% of children with vitiligo have an affected family member.

In addition to these two factors, your child is also at risk for vitiligo if they have thyroid disease , diabetes and alopecia areata (an autoimmune disease that causes hair loss).

Diagnosis of vitiligo in children

A dermatologist will usually diagnose a child with vitiligo based on an examination of white spots on the skin. In addition, your doctor may also use a Wood lamp (a type of skin scanner) to identify affected areas of skin that are difficult to see with the naked eye.

The doctor will also ask more about the child's medical history and family, especially the diseases the child has recently had. In addition, your doctor may also order your child to have a blood test to check if he or she has conditions such as thyroid disease or diabetes.

There are also cases where a doctor will order a biopsy (a piece of affected skin will be removed for laboratory analysis). This will help your doctor check for pigmentation cells in the skin. If the biopsy shows no pigment cells, this could confirm the baby has vitiligo.

Treatment of vitiligo in children

Vitiligo is a very difficult disease to treat, there are many methods being applied, but up to now, there is no medicine to cure completely. The main treatment method is to use drugs to increase the sensitivity to the sun in combination with UV irradiation. Currently the main methods are:

Phototherapy

Inoculate the pigment cells into the vitiligo skin

Skin grafts

Treatment results vary from child to child, and no treatment is guaranteed to be 100% effective. Sometimes the treatment works for one child, but it doesn't work for another.

In addition to following your doctor's orders, you can try the following supportive measures to help your child feel more confident:

Use sunscreen: Heavy exposure to sunlight can cause vitiligo spots to burn and leave behind scarring. In addition, if the child has a tanned skin, it is also very easy to highlight white patches.

Cosmetics: You can use cosmetics to cover up areas of skin that have lost pigmentation. Find cosmetics or sunscreens that match your natural skin tone. You can also consult your doctor about cosmetic brands to find the best product.

Corticosteroid cream : Corticosteroids are a drug commonly used to treat vitiligo spots. However, when using, you should consult your doctor because this drug can cause undesirable side effects.

PUVA lighting: This method has two steps: first, the doctor will give the child a drug called psoralen to apply to the white spots, then the child's skin will be exposed to UVA ultraviolet rays. This method will help the skin to turn white spots become rosy, over time will fade and turn into natural skin color. However, this method can cause a few serious side effects such as severe sunburn and unusual discoloration. Therefore, ask your doctor before giving it a try.

UVB projection: This method is more widely used than the PUVA method. In this method, the child will not need to apply psoralen first, so some side effects will be avoided. In addition, ultraviolet rays are exposed to UVB instead of UVA.

Helping children overcome emotional problems

Although vitiligo is not a life-threatening disease, it can be unsightly and affect a child's psychology. Children may feel inferior and have difficulty making friends and communicating with others. Some children can get through easily but others will need parental support. You can help your child feel more confident with the following tips:

Do not think too much about the disease or show too much concern for your children that you will always love them no matter what they may be.

Encourage your child to explain what vitiligo is to other children. When other children have understood, they will not stare at or distance themselves. 

Encourage your child to go on field trips, school picnics or trips with friends. 

Encourage your child to participate in community activities to be stronger.

Pay attention and take care of the child to have a timely intervention if the child shows signs of depression and anxiety.