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Psoriasis
from: Richard HaighPsoriasis is a common skin condition which affects over 2% of the population in the United States. Typically featured as patchy, raised, red areas of skin inflammation with scaling, psoriasis often affects the tips of the elbows and knees, the scalp, navel, and around the anus and genital areas.
Over 10% of psoriasis patients also develop an associated inflammation of their joints which often is diagnosed as having psoriatic arthritis. About 1 in 10 people with psoriasis will also develop inflammation of joints.
Psoriatic arthritis belongs to a group of arthritis conditions that can cause inflammation of the spine. What causes psoriatic arthritis is is not quite clear, but it is quite likely that combination of genetic and immune factors as well as environmental factors,is involved.
Psoriasis and the joint disease arthritis often appear separately as the arthritis may precede the psoriasis in the majority of patients. Psoriatic arthritis often occurs within both males and females over the age of fifty and affects.Many people will have arthritis for twenty years or more before they get psoriasis.
Patients may have psoriasis for over twenty years prior to the development of arthritis which eventually leads to the diagnosis of psoriatic arthritis. Patients with psoriatic arthritis may also develop inflammation of tendons, cartilage, eyes, lining of the lungs, and occasionally the aorta. Psoriatic arthritic may also mimic the pattern seen with rheumatoid arthritis.
Treatments available to help control psoriasis,and the good news is that their are lots of them Some can be found at the local store while others you will need to go to the docktor to get a prescription.Because they are so many treatment, it may take time to find the right one for you.
Topical corticosteroids are normally the commonly prescribed treatments for psoriasis. This treatment resembles naturally occurring hormones even through it is synthetic. The treatment is available in varying strengths and formulations including lotions, creams, solutions, sprays, gels, and ointments.
Corticosteroids act by slowing down the development of skin cells and lessening the irritation of lesions in patients with psoriasis. Even as corticosteroids may quickly clear lesions, they do not create long term remissions so the lesions linked with psoriasis may happen again after a short term. Side effects are many and may embrace stretch marks or scars on the skin.
Topical treatments work relatively quickly at clearing lesions and are typically well tolerated by the majority of psoriasis sufferers.Topical therapies have remained the mainstay of treatment for many patients suffering with mild psoriasis.
However, topical treatments must be used repeatedly to remain effective and are often not able to maintain remission of an outbreak. Dithranol is a topical therapy which has been used often to treat psoriasis. It can be effective for mild to moderate psoriasis and is often used with ultraviolet treatments for patients with more severe psoriasis.
There are some key issues which limit the use of Dithranol as it can cause irritation and burning to the skin and tends to stain anything it comes in contact with.
As more people have been active partners in their treatment of psoriasis, interest in alternative medicine has grown by leaps and bounds. While complementary and alternative treatments are becoming more common, it is important to note that to date they have not been tested and studied to the same extent as conventional medical treatments.
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