Girl With Painful Skin Condition Can Now Move and Talk Thanks To Vaseline

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When she arrived at hospital, Nagina was unable to move, let alone walk.

Born with a severe condition that makes the skin thick and scaly, a lack of treatment had caused her to seize up.

Her parents, struggling to even put food on the table, had not known how to deal with her condition.

Tragically, when medical workers discovered her, she was living in a shed.

Nagina, now 13, was born in a rural area of Nepal with a genetic condition called ichthyosis.

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Nagina, now 13, was born in a rural area of Nepal with a genetic condition called ichthyosis. This causes a build-up of rough, scaly skin. But thanks to intensive treatment with petroleum jelly - the recommended therapy - she has gone from being unable to move to a happy student

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Tragically, when medical workers discovered Nagina, she was living in a shed and lack of treatment had caused her to seize up. 'When she arrived at hospital she was very depressed and could not move. She didn't talk,' her doctor explained

Here, a 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. However both scenarios cause a build-up of rough, scaly skin.

There is no cure - and people with severe ichthyosis may need to spend several hours a day caring for their skin with moisturisers or such as petroleum jelly.

The solution seems simple enough. But many people such as Nagina have no access to the products we consider everyday medicine cabinet staples.

If they did, many conditions - from dry skin to more severe conditions such as hers - could be managed, vastly improving their quality of life.

Today, thanks to the devoted care of doctors - and a free lifetime's supply of Vaseline - Nagina is thriving.

Discharged from hospital, she is now attending school. And the depressed girl who never spoke or smiled is now described as 'extremely bright', with many friends.

'The difference something as simple as Vaseline has made to her life is incredible,' said Dr Bibek Banskota, medical director at the Hospital & Rehabilitation Center for Disabled Children, where Nagina was treated for five months.

'When she arrived she was very depressed and could not move. She didn't talk,' he told MailOnline.

'So when I found out we could help her for life, I was the happiest person in the world.'

But how had she got into such a state?

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The first priority was to treat Nagina's skin, which had deteriorated to a horrific state. ‘It really was a case of using creams to hydrate her skin and a lot of TLC,' said Dr Banskota. 'The nurses were amazing, they wrapped her body in Vaseline-soaked gauze every day and bathed her. She got love and care'

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As the weeks went by and her skin improved, Nagina came back to life. 'She smiled for the first time, had physiotherapy to help her become mobile and she met other children with disabilities,' said Dr Banskota

‘Many families don't know what to do when it comes to disabilities,' Dr Banskota told me. ‘In many countries there is a stigma associated with them.

‘Every family loves their child, but when you live in a house where there isn't even enough to eat and drink, other issues are not a priority.'

In order to get Nagina moving, staff first had to treat her skin.

And as these harrowing pictures show, it had deteriorated to a horrific state.

‘It really was a case of using creams to hydrate her skin and a lot of TLC,' said Dr Banskota.

'The nurses were amazing, they wrapped her body in Vaseline-soaked gauze every day and bathed her. She got love and care.'

As the weeks went by and her skin improved, Nagina came back to life.

'She smiled for the first time, she had physiotherapy to help her become mobile and she met other children with disabilities.'

But in the long term, what she really needed was a constant supply of petroleum jelly to keep her skin healthy.

By chance, staff at the international charity Direct Relief heard of her story and contacted Vaseline, whom they had links with.

Nagina now attends a boarding school for children with disabilities which is funded by the hospital.

‘She is very bright and despite being born with a deformed hand, she has adapted and has better handwriting than me,' said Dr Banskota.

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Nagina now attends a boarding school for children with disabilities, which is funded by the Hospital & Rehabilitation Center for Disabled Children, Nepal