How do you fix idiopathic guttate hypomelanosis?
What is the treatment for idiopathic guttate hypomelanosis?
- Cryotherapy — 5 second, single session, repigmentation visible by 4 months.
- Topical treatments — topical steroid, tacrolimus, topical retinoids.
- Procedural treatments — chemical peel, excimer laser, skin grafting.
Can you get rid of idiopathic guttate hypomelanosis?
Surgical techniques, from cryosurgery to dermabrasion, have been tried for idiopathic guttate hypomelanosis, with some success. Theoretically, cryotherapy would remove the damaged melanocytes, which would encourage normal melanocytes to replace them.
What is the cause of idiopathic guttate hypomelanosis?
Age. Idiopathic guttate hypomelanosis is related to the lack of pigmentary protection from the sun and sun exposure rather than to age. Fair-skinned women develop this condition first; later, with increasing age and exposure to sun, both sexes seem to be equally affected.
Does idiopathic guttate hypomelanosis spread?
Typically, idiopathic guttate hypomelanosis develops first on the legs of fair-skinned women in early adult life. Later, it may spread to other sun-exposed areas, such as the arms and the upper part of the back.
Can I get rid of IGH?
Treatment modalities that may reduce the appearance of IGH include the topical steroids, tretinoin, pimecrolimus and dermabrasion.
Is IGH permanent?
Idiopathic Guttate Hypomelanosis The spots are permanent,” warns Dr. Shainhouse. Aside from causing brown spots, too much sun exposure also destroys the skin’s melanocytes that result in these light spots that often appear on the arms and legs.
Can IGH be removed?
Many options for the treatment of IGH have been reported such as chemical applications (pimecrolimus, tacrolimus), chemical peeling using phenol, cryotherapy, liquid nitrogen, non-ablative fractional photothermolysis, dermabrasion, UVB (excimer light), fractional carbon dioxide lasers, freezing with liquid nitrogen.
Can IGH go away?
IGH is a benign condition with an excellent prognosis; however, once present, lesions do not remit without treatment.
Is IGH itchy?
The number of patches usually increases with time but individual lesions remain the same size, and cause no symptoms whatsoever except mild pruritus, in a few individuals.
Can you get rid of IGH?
Patients should be reassured that lesions of IGH are benign and no treatment necessary. There are no universally accepted efficacious treatments for this condition.
Can you get rid of IGH spots?
How do you treat IGH?
Idiopathic guttate hypomelanosis (IGH) is an acquired disorder presenting with small hypopigmented macules that occur chiefly on sun exposed regions of the skin. Treatments for IGH include corticosteroid, either topical or intralesional, topical retinoid, topical calcineurin inhibitors and surgical techniques.