Ichthyosis
“Fish-scale” skin appearance could be due to a condition called ichthyosis, this is a condition that causes widespread and persistent thick, dry, scaly looking skin. There are at least 20 different types of ichthyosis. Some types are inherited at birth and other types are acquired during adulthood. Most people with ichthyosis have inherited a particular faulty gene from their parent. The faulty gene affects the rate at which the skin regenerates – either the shedding of old skin cells is too slow, or the skin cells reproduce at a much faster rate than they can shed old skin. Either way, this causes a build-up of rough, scaly skin.
There's no cure for ichthyosis, but a daily skincare routine usually keeps the symptoms mild and manageable.
Treating ichthyosis
Moisturising and exfoliating the skin daily can help prevent dryness, scaling and the build-up of skin cells.
You should:
apply emollients to wet skin to trap the moisture – ideally a few minutes after having a bath or shower
gently rub or scrub wet skin to remove some of the thickened skin
brush washed hair to remove scales from your scalp
Yap Lih shin is a fully registered pharmacist in Malaysia since 2011. She completed her training under Hospital Banting and Hospital Selayang and obtained her Bachelor (Hons) Degree in Pharmacy from International Medical University, Malaysia. She is also a certified Respiratory Medication Therapy Adherence Clinic trainer of Malaysia Pharmacy Board since 2013. Despite her routine pharmacy practices, she also involved herself with research. Her research titled Relationship Between Phosphate Binders, Dietary Protein And Phosphate Intake In Controlling Hyperphosphataemia Amongst Patients On Continuous Ambulatory Peritoneal Dialysis is selected as one of the oral presentation in Asian Conference on Clinical Pharmacy, (ACCP) Singapore 2010 . In 2013, Lih Shin represented Malaysia to be one of the speaker for International Health Conference, Brunei, with the topic: Inhaler device. In year 2014, she is featured in Radio Interview at Asyik FM for the topic: Asthma and COPD. Recently, she gained her interest on natural ingredients skin care product and started her brand Kel’s Natural since 2016.
