post inflammatory hypopigmentation

Hi Dr. Rockoff,

am a 24 yrs old female , with no significant past medical history
when i was 2 years old i had a burn ( boiled water ) over my right side of my body
according to my parents i was admitted to the the ICU and a lot was done for my skin

my skin now pretty much normal looking apart from one area near my right armpit

but the problem is that i noticed that my right areola is hypopigmented ( the color is really odd some brown streaks with the rest being light pink where u can see the viens underneath
i dont remmeber when was the last time it was normal looking but i can remmeberthat i started to be embarrassed by it when i was 16
i always thought there was no treatment and i was very subconscious about so i told no one
untill last year  when i went to see a doctor ( dermatologist
( who told me that i had post inflammatory hypopigmentation ) and that the fact am brown and not a fair person it might be more difficult to treat
she was glad that hair still grows near that area ( its a good sign i guess )
she prescriped to me the following :

bioscreen cleanser - to wash and apply eucerin afterwards
protopic ointment to apply once a day for half an hour
to expose my self to the sun for half an hour a day
vitix tab ( guilty of not using it regulary my stomach dont tolerate it well

i am onthe treament for almost 3 months now
i havint seen any improvement in the hypopigmented areas

i did ask if there was any laser treatment or any thing else to add
but she said no

i do realize that to see results it may take almost 2-4 months
but my doctor seem to avoid answering my questions ( starting with my first vist

my question is there a better alternative, laser perhaps
somthing to add to the treatment or to replace

iam even considering to travel to germany hoping for a better treatment i just want to make sure before i go ahead

sorry for may grammer and spelling mistakes english is not my mother language

thanxx alot in advance

[Bhupinder Kaur, MD]

Hello,
Post inflammatory hypopigmentation is very difficult to treat but sometimes it goes away on its own after exposure to the sun. Creams like  Elidel cream or Protropic can be used on these hypopigmented  areas but at such a young age it is not advisable to use them . If the symptoms still persist then you can talk to your dermatologist about laser-assisted chemabrasion(LACA).

It is very difficult to precisely confirm a diagnosis without examination and investigations and the answer is based on the medical information provided. For exact diagnosis, you are requested to consult your doctor. I sincerely hope that helps. Take care and please do keep me posted on how you are doing.