MELASMA

What is Melasma?

Melasma is a common skin problem. It is a pigmentation disorder that causes brown or grey - patches to appear on the skin, primarily on the face. 

It’s also called chloasma, or the “mask of pregnancy,” when it occurs in pregnant women.

It occurs on cheeks, chin, nose bridge, forehead, & above the upper lip. Melasma may also appear on other areas of the body, especially those exposed to a lot of sunlight. These areas may include the forearms, the neck, the shoulders.

It is more common in women than men. It is sometimes triggered by an increase in hormones in pregnant women.

In melasma, Melanin is increased in the within the skin layers.

Causes of Melasma

Causative factors include genetic influences, ultraviolet (UV) radiation, pregnancy, hormonal therapies, cosmetics, phototoxic drugs, and antiseizure medications.

Pregnancy is a common cause of melasma. It also affects woman taking oral contraceptives and hormones. 

Stress and thyroid disease are also thought to be causes of melasma.

Symptoms of Melasma

Melasma causes patches of discoloration. While it does not cause any other physical symptoms, but for some people find the appearance of these patches bothersome. The patches are darker than your usual skin colour. It typically occurs on the face and is symmetrical, with matching marks on both sides of the face. Other areas of your body that are often exposed to sun can also develop melasma.

Distinct patterns include:

• Centro-facial — forehead, cheeks, nose, upper lip (sparing the philtrum); 50-80% of presentations

• Malar — cheeks, nose

• Mandibular — jawline, chin

• Erythroses pigmentosa facia — reddened or inflamed

• Extra-facial — forearms, upper arms, shoulders in a sun-exposed distribution.

Melasma can be separated into epidermal, dermal, and mixed types, depending on the level of increased melanin in the skin. 

Homoeopathic Treatment For Melasma

Homoeopathy works effectively in cases of melasma. Usually, if hormonal changes, such as those that occur during pregnancy or while taking birth control pills, have caused melasma, it will fade after delivery or once a person stops taking the pills. 

If melasma does not fade over time, a person can seek treatment to help remove or fade the patches. 

Homoeopathic medicines can remove patches of melasma, if medicine is selected accordingly. Depending upon the type of cause responsible to cause melasma, homoeopathic medicines vary. Brahma Madhurya Homoeopathy choose your homoeopathic medicines according to the symptoms & cause of melasma. 

The goals of treatment are to:

• Decrease how much pigment your body makes.

• Help you to overcome the tendency of having melasma again & again.

• Even out your skin tone, restoring it to your natural colour.

To achieve these goals, a treatment plan often consists of the totality of symptoms, which is often formed by the homoeopathic doctor to choose the best medicine for providing you the holistic treatment.