White Spots on the Skin

The skin is generally prone to a variety of ailments, white spots being one of them. White spots on the skin can occur just about anywhere on the body, such as the upper back, upper forearms, neck, shoulders, shins, and so on. Many types of white spots usually don’t cause irritation, itch, or hurt, but nevertheless, there they are, and can be quite conspicuous on dark or tanned skin. And most people find them quite distressing. So, what exactly are these white spots on skin? Well, given below are some of the conditions that cause them.

Tinea Versicolor: Also referred to as pityriasis versicolor, this is a fairly common benign, or non-cancerous skin condition that is caused by a kind of yeast, known as Malassezia, that normally occurs on the skin. In certain conditions, such as when the skin becomes moist, oily, and warm, the yeast can overgrow, and thereby cause white spots on the skin, which can also be reddish-brown in color. These usually occur in the upper arms, abdomen, neck, and thighs. Even though it is an infection, since tinea versicolor occurs normally in the skin, it is not contagious.

Some of the conditions that make white spots on the skin due to tinea versicolor more likely are: humid and warm climate; oily skin; excessive sweating; malnourishment; medications like corticosteroids, or anything that weakens the immune system; and pregnancy. It can be treated with anti-fungal medications like terbinafine, miconazole and clotrimazole, which can be bought over the counter. There is also a shampoo that is available over the counter which contains selenium sulfide. It can be applied like a lotion on the affected areas before going to bed, and rinsed off the next morning. However, if the condition persists for over two weeks of daily treatment, it is best to consult a dermatologist.

Vitiligo: This too is quite a common skin condition affecting about 1 to 2 percent of the people all over the world. It generally shows up as white spots or patches of skin. It is caused because vitiligo destroys the cells that produce the pigment of the skin. Although it is still not known what exactly causes vitiligo, however, it seems to occur more commonly in people with certain kinds of autoimmune diseases such as hyperthyroidism, pernicious anemia, and adrenocortical insufficiency, alopecia areata. Any kind of stress that affects the immune system may also lead to vitiligo. Sometimes, a mild trauma to some part of the skin may cause new patches of skin, such as the ankles due to being rubbed with footwear. Vitiligo also often runs in families, so there may be a hereditary factor too. There are various methods of treating vitiligo such as photo therapy, skin grafting (especially at the early stages), steroid creams, psoralen photochemotherapy, depigmentation treatment, immunodulator creams used with UVB Narrowband treatments, laser treatment, and so on.

Idiopathic Guttate Hypomelanosis: This causes flat white spots on the skin, measuring about 2-5 mm in diameter. The term ‘idiopathic’ refers to the fact that the cause is not known, ‘guttate’ refers to the fact that the spots resemble teardrops, and ‘hypomelanosis’ means the lighter color of the areas that are affected. It mainly affects fair-skinned people, although it can sometimes occur in darker skin too. Although it usually occurs on the areas of the forearms that are exposed to the sun and the shins, it can also appear on the shoulders, neck, and face. The white spots are generally smooth, although sometimes they can even be scaly. They seem to be associated with the natural process of aging, usually occurring in people more than 40 years of age. Women seem to get them more than men. It is thought that hereditary factors may be involved, since it seems to occur in families.

As far as treating this condition is concerned, it is usually not required since the white spots are quite harmless. In fact, trying to get rid of the spots may result in leaving bigger white spots on the skin or brown spots. Protecting the skin from the sun is very important. Some of the measures for improving the appearance are: topical steroid creams, covering it up cosmetically, tretinoin cream, microdermabrasion or superficial dermabrasion, light cryotherapy, and grafting of skin.