Misdiagnosed Dandruff Later Confirmed as Scalp Psoriasis Successfully Treated with Homeopathy

A 31-year-old computer engineer, Mr. K.J. (Patient ID: 33628), was misdiagnosed with dandruff in 2014. After 2 years, the condition flared up, and he was later diagnosed with scalp psoriasis. His complaints began due to the stress of his studies while pursuing his undergraduate degree. The disease started with scaling and flakes on the scalp, and the upper lobes of both ears were affected. The patient frequently changed doctors and took allopathic (steroids) as well as Ayurvedic treatment. His complaints remained stable with conventional treatment, and he was not on any treatment for 3–4 months. On 18th September 2017, the patient visited the Mulund clinic and started treatment with Life Force Homeopathy. He had complaints of dryness, flakes, and itching over the scalp. There was no active lesion or scaling, and the complaints were aggravated after eating sweets and on exposure to the sun.

Associated Complaints:

Along with psoriasis, he also developed hair loss in 2017, which worried him. He used to apply neem oil and lotion to control it.

Physical generals:

The patient’s appetite, thirst, and bowel routine were normal. Perspiration was offensive. He could not tolerate a hot environment. He craved sweets, but due to aggravation, he stopped eating them. His sleep was about 7–8 hours, but it was unrefreshing, with a headache and heaviness of the forehead, and he had to sleep again to feel better. He also had frequent dreams of ghosts.

Life situation:

The patient lived with his mother, father, and 4 sisters and had cordial relations with everyone. His childhood and adulthood were happy, and his parents were supportive. He completed computer engineering and started further higher studies. Four years ago, the patient had a heartbreak and felt sad and depressed and lost interest in day-to-day life for 2 months, but later he moved on. At present, there is no acute stress.

Mental generals:

The patient is a jolly, confident person but gets angry at the wrong deeds of people in society. He even avoids reading such news. He anticipates the future. He also experiences anticipatory anxiety before starting any work, but once he begins, the work goes well.

Family history:

The patient’s father suffered from diabetes and inflammatory heart disease, and one sister has urticaria.

Life Force Homeopathy:

After studying the case in detail, Dr. Shah prescribed research-based homeopathic medicines along with dietary advice to the patient.

Follow-ups:

On 13th November 2017, there was a reduction in itching, no dandruff or flakes, but dryness and scaling were present over the scalp after applying oil. His aggravation from sweets was under control; he had sweets during Diwali, but there was no flare-up.

On 19th March 2018, improvement was seen. Dryness and scaling of the scalp were better, and itching was present occasionally. There was no new eruption or spread.

On 18th May 2018, there was a slight aggravation for one month. Dryness and scaling increased, flakes were present, and itching also increased. The patient noticed that when he started growing his hair, his complaints got aggravated, so he shaved his head, and his complaints improved.

On 15th July 2018, the aggravated state had settled, and dryness, scaling, and itching were better.

On 26th November 2018, the patient’s symptoms were better, but no further improvement was seen.

On 15th April 2019, there was still no further improvement in symptoms.

On 10th July 2019, the complaints were aggravated. The patient saw a new eruption on the scalp, and itching, dryness, and scaling had increased for the past month due to a gap and irregularity in medicines.

On 1st October 2019, there was a 60% improvement, and new eruptions had subsided.

On 27th March 2020, there was improvement in scaling, itching, and dryness, and no new eruptions were seen for 5 months.

On 30th May 2020, symptoms were better, but the patient had seen 2–3 new eruptions on the scalp for the past month, the cause of which was unknown.

On 2nd August 2020, the new patches had stabilized. The patient noticed that after shaving the scalp completely, itching, redness, and flaking reduced, but dryness was aggravated if he stopped oiling the scalp.

On 9th December 2020, the patient was better. There were no new eruptions on the scalp, and itching and dryness had improved.

On 22nd April 2021, there was further improvement. Within 4 months, no eruptions were seen, and itching was only occasional.

Conclusion:

Scalp psoriasis is a condition that can be misdiagnosed as dandruff in the initial period and, therefore, mistreated. In this case, due to misdiagnosis and treatment, the condition flared up and was later suppressed with conventional treatment. The patient was never free from disease symptoms. After starting treatment with Life Force Homeopathy, though there was some aggravation in between, the patient experienced 80–90% relief and could even consume sweets, which he used to crave but which previously aggravated his symptoms.

• Case study written by Dr. Unnati Bhangare, an associate doctor to Dr. Rajesh Shah, MD (Hom)