Plaque psoriasis |
| More than 80% of sufferers have this type in which the skin forms red lesions known as plaques and they have a silver coloured scale. They are often extremely itchy and sore. |
Nail psoriasis |
| Here this manifestation affects the nails and they may become discoloured and damaged. |
Guttat psoriasis |
| A form of psoriasis that often attacks babies and young persons especially if there is or has been a throat infection.Small drop shaped sores usually appear. |
Scalp psoriasis |
| An affliction of the scalp which breaks out in silvery patches of skin which may or may not be itchy. |
Inverse psoriasis |
| This condition caused smoth red patches on those parts of the body where there are folds in the skin such as groin, buttocks, arm pits and under the breasts etc. |
Acropustulosis psoriasis |
| A condition affecting the toes and fingers which develop postules which leave bright red areas that often ooze and become scaley. |
Palmaplanter pustular psoriasis |
| There are pustules which appear on your hands and feet which form scaly loose spots. |
Von Zumbusche |
| Pustules will appear quite quickly over the body and these contain a white non infective pus which later on dry and peel off. There may be some general malaise. |
Prurigo |
This is not a true form of psoriasis but causes very similar symptoms and there are several types of which my own condition was called purigo nodulus. |
Eczema |
Again this is not in itself a psoriasis but has similar symptoms and there would not be many families where this had not occured. Eczema can be contact aquired or of a systemic type and can appear on any place on the body
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| General -
if you suffer from any of these complaints the salient symptoms are extreme itching and/or soreness, pustules and redness and scaly skin
Please be aware - Any skin condition Is extremely difficult to diagnose and should not be attempted at home. The surest and safest method is too seek expert opinion.
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Who can be affected? |
Unfortunately the simple and most direct answer is that anyone can be effected by this group of skin conditions whether they be masculine or feminine and no matter whether they are young babies or senior citizens
Furthermore,these skin conditions are no respecter of race nor geographical location although it has been observed that folks living in sunny climates tend to gain some relief from the sunshine rays.
One regrettable fact of these skin conditions is that they generally tend to be chronic; in other words they stay with you for life although you may have periods of remission and relief. |
How can I find out? |
Well first of all you will know for yourself that something is amiss as you will have some degree of itchiness coupled generally with some form of spots or pustules which may be flaky and these conditions may be localised or may be more generalised.
Your immediate step is to go and see your GP who will of course recognise the general sort of condition that you have but he is unlikely to have the specialised knowledge to be able to diagnose it accurately. He may try out treatment from his own experience in the first case and this is likely to take the form of a milder steroidal preparation and emollients (creams etc. to keep the skin from drying out).
If there is no response to these, he will almost certainly want to refer you to a dermatologist for a more accurate diagnosis and other methods of treatment. Normally, this can be handled in the out patient department.
it is no use looking for a quick nor an immediate answer and you will require great patience as I did together with demanding self control not to aggravate the itchiness by scratching.
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Is there any treatment available? |
I have to be brutally frank on this point. There are in fact treatments available and they may well be tried on your skin condition and indeed they may well help it or relieve the symptoms and may even give you complete remission but the outlook for actually being cured is rather a bleak one. There is a medical joke about a father advising his son on taking a medical career and he says to his son," do dermatology on three scores:" "You will always have plenty of patients. They are unlikely to die on you. They will never get better." On that rather cynical bit of humour let me look at the three main types of treatment:-
TOPICAL - This is when your skin condition is treated directly with applications of some topical medications to sooth or slow down your immune system to prevent it from producing an excess of skin cells.
SYSTEMIC - This aims at treating the body as a whole by means of internal drugs usually aimed at stabilising the immune system. There is always a risk of other undesirable effects occurring or a reaction with other drugs.Skilled prescribing and careful monitoring are essential.
LIGHT TREATMENT - There are several different types of light treatment used which in a way mimic the sun's rays and can bring about a chemical change in the skin. Doses start very low and are gradually increased under expert supervision. I would be very pleased to hear by e.mail from anyone who has received relief or even a cure from any other form of legitimate treatment but please do not write to me about alternative medicines/treatments a they are too numerous and medically unproven. |
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Who are you Alan Mannering? |
I am just a guy who was diagnosed fairly late in life and tries to spread the word. I am 71 and am a retired teacher and still lead a normal life and travel frequently. I just consider that this is an important message to get across to people who are victins of psoriasis and other dibilitating skin diseases. |
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