Skin Disoder - Psoriasis
Understand What Is Psoriasis And Treat It Effectively
Psoriasis is a physical condition that can cause significant
psychological distress which has affected approximately one
out of every 50 adults. Interestingly, psoriasis is found
rooted in the body's immune system.
The symptoms are usually associated with a flare-up of psoriasis
which includes skin that is salmon-colored, scaly, flaky and
irritated. With plaque psoriasis, the most common form, affected
areas tend to develop round, oval or irregularly-shaped red
patches of red which are covered with skin that's scaly and
silver-colored. The shapes of the patchy areas are not consistent,
and in fact, several small patches might combine together
and appear as one big irregular shape of irritated skin. These
areas are ugly and sometimes they crack and cause bleeding.
The area of the affected skin can be extremely itchy and
frequently has a burning sensation. There is no consistent
time of the flare-up. It can last 20 days or 120 days or even
longer. What makes it worse is, for those patients with chronic
condition, recurring flare-ups can happen any time.
There are several most commonly affected parts of the body,
such as the trunk, head, elbows and knees. In fact, any body
part can develop psoriasis. And also, flare-ups also tend
to be symmetrical, which means both sides of the body will
experience flare-ups in the same areas at the same time.
It is believed that psoriasis is hereditary as well, patient
who have had relatives being a victim are more likely to develop
this psoriasis themselves too. For some unknown reasons, T-cells,
which are responsible for producing the white blood cells
that help our bodies fight infection, cause the skin to become
inflamed. T-cells, which is known to be the trigger of the
production of an overabundance skin cells. These excess skin
cells pile up on top of one another since there is no where
else for them to go, they will then create the telltale appearance
of raised patches on the skin's exterior. The red appearance
is the increased blood supply that's needed to nourish these
skin cells.
Skin injuries, sunlight and streptococcal infections are
the most common triggers of Psoriasis. Besides, stress can
also trigger an outbreak as can changes in hormone levels.
Individuals with early stages of HIV seem to have higher instances
of psoriasis as well.
Worry not; psoriasis is not contagious so you need not fear
of contracting it from other patients. The smokers and who
consume alcohol potentially increase their risks of developing
psoriasis.
Right now, there is still no cure for psoriasis. However
there are many treatments that are effective at alleviating
the symptoms. Start by keeping affected areas moist and restrict
yourself from the temptation to scratch the area.
Topical treatments are usually attempted to slow down the
the excess production of skin cells. Coal tar, salicylic acid,
corticosteroids, synthetic vitamin D, tazorac and anthrallin
are the common topical treatment used as they are specially-formulated
bathing products and moisturizers. As for the more severe
cases, systemic medications will be prescribed. Phototherapy,
where patients are exposed to medically-supervised ultraviolet
radiation is also effective in treating psoriasis.
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