Melasma Sydney White

Description Melasma is a common skin problem where spots on the skin appear. The spots are usually a brown to a gray brown color. Melasma usually occurs on the cheeks, bridge of nose, forehead, chin and above the upper lip.

Scientific Description Affects the epidermal the outer layer of the skin or the dermal inner layer of the skin

Other Signs/Symptoms Three types of Melasma. Epidermal-well defined border, dark brown, responds well to treatment. Dermal- most common, ill-defined border, light brown/bluish, responds poorly to treatment. Mixed- combination of bluish, light/dark brown patches, partial improvement with treatment.

Cause Melasma can be caused by sun exposure, pregnancy, and birth control. They are not sure what causes Melasma, but it is believed to be caused when the cells in the skin that provide color called melanocytes produce too much color.

Cure There are some medications such as Hydroquinone, or Tretinoin and corticosteroids, there are some other topical medicines your doctor might try or a procedure such as a chemical peel, microdermabrasion, and dermabrasion.

Facts about Melasma Melasma is more common in women than in men. Out of all of the cases of Melasma only about ten percent of them are men. People with these skin types are more likely to get Melasma: Latin/Hispanic, North African, African-American, Asian, Indian, Middle Eastern, and Mediterranean There are about six million women in the United States with Melasma and about forty five to fifty million women in the world with it. Over ninety percent of Melasma cases are women. Melasma that occurs during pregnancy is called “the mask of pregnancy”.

Sources http://www.aad.org/dermatology-a-to-z/diseases-and-treatments/m---p/melasma/diagnosis-treatment http://www.medicinenet.com/melasma/article.htm http://dermnetnz.org/colour/melasma.html http://www.skintasticskin.com/relatedarticles/melasma.html