The father of a 10-year-old girl child, Miss. B.L.P. (PIN: 35974) contacted Life Force Homeopathy Clinic online on 1st March 2018. He was staying at Guntur in Andhra Pradesh and was looking for homeopathic treatment for his daughter’s vitiligo. As he was staying far, he was specifically looking out for an online treatment facility where he could take treatment without the need to visit the clinic.
Miss. B.L.P. had developed a vitiligo patch on the right side of her upper lip since a month. Though he had started with conventional treatment for his daughter as soon as he noticed the patch, the skin condition was progressing. This was a matter of concern for her parents. They could not identify any triggering factors for her vitiligo then. They did not even have a family history of Vitiligo. Her paternal grandfather had diabetes mellites.
Her case history was taken online. During the case taking, the patient’s father said that she loved to eat chocolates and ice-creams. Her appetite was normal. She drank around one liter of water every day. The patient’s motions were regular. She did not perspire much. She slept for 9 hours and felt refreshed after waking up from sleep. She felt more comfortable in a moderate climate and could not tolerate extremes of both the heat and cold.
Also, her mother added that she was normally a happy child but, when angry with someone, she would simply stop talking to that person. She also had an unusual hobby of collecting small objects.
Dr. Shah analyzed her case and the Vitiligo photos and prescribed homeopathic medicine Pulsatilla along with research-based medicines to the patient. Our associate doctor guided the parents about the right diet to be followed in Vitiligo and about the skincare that is required to be followed for vitiligo.
Follow-Ups:
During the first follow-up, the patient’s father was a bit concerned as his daughter’s vitiligo had spread to the skin over her lip. On inquiring, he revealed that they had stopped the conventional medicines after starting with the homeopathic medicines from Life Force. The doctor explained to the father that this spread was due to a sudden stoppage of the conventional medicines and steroid withdrawal and may continue for some time further.
During the next two follow-ups, the patient’s father was concerned as there was no change in her condition.
Finally, in the follow-up on 10th September 2018, the patient’s father informed some improvements in the healing of her skin patch.
The improvement continued further to the later follow-up on 24th November 2018. Her vitiligo-affected skin was healing from the upper margin of the lip. The white margin showed re-pigmentation. Now, the patch was only 4 cm in size
On 29th November 2019, the patient’s father reported the presence of a new spot on her leg that she had developed after a fall. On inquiring about the lip patch, he said that it had healed further.
On 24th February 2020, almost half of the lip of the patient had got re-pigmented. Also, the new spot that had developed had disappeared completely. The patient’s father was happy with the improvement, but, at the same time, he was worried about the pace of improvement. The associate doctor explained that the vitiligo patches present on her lips, fingertips, and mucus membranes were difficult cases and so were healing slowly.
On the follow-up on 4th July 2020, the patch on her lip had 60% healed.
On 1st August 2021, the patient’s father reported that her recovery from the vitiligo patch was almost 70% better.
The child’s father was asked to continue the treatment till the entire lip would re-pigment.
Conclusion:
This case illustrates that:
- Long-distance consultation and treatment are equally effective as face-to-face consultation. Homeopathy treats vitiligo gently, effectively, and safely with no side effects.
- Vitiligo patches on the patient’s lips, fingertips, bony prominence, genitals, palms and soles, and mucus membranes are difficult to treat as there are no hair roots in that area. The improvement in these areas may take time and recovery can be gradual as compared to the other parts of the body.
- If the patient is on conventional treatment at the time of starting the treatment, it has to be tapered off slowly once the homeopathic medicine establishes its action on the body. Abrupt stoppage of conventional medicines may cause the vitiligo to increase. This is called steroid relapse resulting due to withdrawal.
- During treatment, it is likely that the patient may get new spots on the body. It may happen due to certain internal and external factors acting and disturbing the immunity. However, as long as the old patches are improving, the patient need not worry. Homeopathic medicines can take care of these new skin patches.
- Written by Dr. Yafta S., Associate doctor to Dr. Rajesh Shah