Differentiating White Spots: Tinea Versicolor vs. Leprosy Explained by Expert Dermatologist

Chair of the Morbus Hansen (leprosy) Study Group of the Association of Indonesian Dermatology and Venereology Specialists, Dr Dr Sri Linuwih SW Menaldi, SpKK(K), FINSDV, FAADV, revealed the difference between the white spots of tinea versicolor and leprosy, one of which is accompanied by numbness.

“Leprosy is a skin disorder that resembles many other skin diseases and the disorder may not be felt or numb. The thing that differentiates it from tinea versicolor, (white spots) is more in open areas, it’s numb,” he told ANTARA when met at Jakarta, Thursday.

The doctor who teaches at the Department of Dermatology, Faculty of Medicine, University of Indonesia, also said that there is slight redness at the edges of the white spots in leprosy. However, sometimes all the spots are red.

Talking about the location of the spots, tinea versicolor generally appears in areas covered by clothing, while leprosy is usually found on the cheeks, arms or elbows and some leprosy patients find spots on their backs.

“Then if the tinea versicolor is usually small in size, but if the tinea versicolor is very large it can also be. Then, tinea versicolor is itchy and scaly, it’s very visible,” said Sri.

According to Sri, sometimes leprosy shows no symptoms or is visible to the eye. This is because the bacteria that cause leprosy, namely Mycobacterium leprae does not damage the nerves or only damages the nerves but at the end.

He advised those who find white spots on their bodies and do not recover with self-treatment for months to immediately consult a doctor to find out the cause and immediately get treatment if they are positive for leprosy.

“If it doesn’t heal, there’s no change, he has to get treatment. Especially if he doesn’t feel anything, doesn’t itch, doesn’t hurt. When he tries to treat it for a few months, it’s like that, he has to get treatment immediately,” he explained.

Leprosy patients who do not receive treatment or treatment are at risk of experiencing disability, which is a permanent complication of leprosy and causes limitations in carrying out activities and participating in social activities.

According to the Ministry of Health, leprosy patients tend to have a progressive degree of physical disability with a probability of 35 percent.

Indonesia has actually achieved national leprosy elimination with a prevalence of less than 1 per 10,000 population in 2020. However, in 2022 it will be found that seven provinces and 113 districts/cities have not achieved leprosy elimination.

Data from the Ministry of Health for 2022 shows that 12,416 new leprosy cases were discovered in 2022 with the proportion of leprosy without disability around 82.9 percent.

This news was published on Antaranews.com with the title: This is the difference between the white spots of tinea versicolor and leprosy

Reporter: Lia Wanadriani Santosa

Editor: M Fikri Setiawan