Creams & ointments not working

[Guest Posts]

I have (biopsied) Lichen sclerosus patches on my hips and they are growing and spreading. I have been using different steroid creams and ointments (of different strengths) over the last year and nothing seems to be working. I am now developing patches on my underarm. Is there anything I can do?

Thank you,
Nadja

[Dr Karen Gibbon]

Thank you for your post. Extra-genital Lichen Sclerosus (LS) is a relatively common condition which we see in dermatology clinics. The treatments for this do vary. In general you start with cream/ointment in the form of super potent steroids e.g dermovate or nerisone forte. They need to be used daily for several months (initially up to 3 months) to see if they are going to be effective. If this is not helping or the patches are spreading then it's possible to move to a type of specialised light treatment ie phototherapy. There are different regimens to try and different dermatology units have access to different types of machines for this. There are also some oral treatments to try for LS. These in general are aimed at dampening down the immune system and act as anti-inflammatories. Such treatments include methotrexate and would only be started within a dermatology unit setting. I hope this helps give you some clearer ideas about how to proceed. Dr Karen L Gibbon Consultant Dermatologist