Between 5.8 million and 7.5 million people live with the skin disease psoriasis, yet almost half with moderate to severe cases are not getting treatment and others are receiving out-of-date treatment. Why? Because the condition is still widely misunderstood—people who live with it can be subject to prejudice and discrimination—and treatments have not been very good until now.
“Just a few years ago, we didnt have such great options,” says Steven Feldman, MD, PhD, professor of dermatology at the Wake Forest University School of Medicine in Winston-Salem, NC. “Thats changed! Treatments are now more effective, safer, and easier to use than ever.”
Psoriasis is an often painful and itchy chronic skin condition that produces red, inflamed patches on the skin. The patches, which are not contagious, are usually covered with a white buildup of dead skin cells. Scientists are not sure what causes it, but they do know that psoriasis involves a genetic dysfunction that triggers an inappropriate immune response, leading to the rapid production of new skin cells.
A Healthy Diet for Psoriasis?
round-glass-scale-feet
Losing weight may help Read more
More about psoriasis
How Managing Stress May Help Your Psoriasis
6 Skin-Healthy Vacations
Psoriasis Skin-Care Product Guide
There are five types of psoriasis: plaque (the most common form), guttate, inverse, pustular, and erythrodermic. Psoriasis can appear anywhere on the body and up to 30% of people with psoriasis will develop psoriatic arthritis, a painful condition in which joints are inflamed and stiff.
“Psoriasis is largely an inherited condition, but it involves multiple genes and possibly some environmental factors to bring the disease on,” says Dr. Feldman. Common triggers include stress; skin trauma, such as sunburn or wounds; some medications, including antimalarial drugs; and, in the case of guttate psoriasis, strep infection.
No comments:
Post a Comment