Psoriasis
 

Any Doctors or fellow sufferers care to comment?

I have been suffereing from Psoriasis now for over 5 years and it's getting on my t1ts.:( Fortunately, I only suffer mild symptoms but it has spread to other places and I fear that this will carry on as time passes. My GP came up with a wonderful pearl of wisdom when we were discussing why I had Psoriasis. After explaining that I ran my own business which has proven very stressfull at times in recent years, he suggested that I might consider another career!:wonder: :( :nono: :mad: :cuckoo: . Yeah, nice one Doc, simple as that!:lol1:

I have been prescribed all the usual creams etc. and have found "Dovabet" (Sp?) to keep scabiness at bay on my elbows and knees. However, this is a right pain applying morning and night and due to the nature of the product it leaves patches on shirts and sticks trousers to knees etc.

I also have it on my scalp in patches which doesn't bother me too much as I have thick dark hair so it can't be seen. Tried all the coal tar shampoos etc. but can't stand the smell.

My main concern is that I also have it under my finger nails & toe nails which raises the nail and makes them look horrible. I also get black spots/lines in the nail which are weird and it can make the nail painful at times.

As I mentioned earlier, my symptoms are not as bad as some poor sufferers but I want to improve my situation if at all possible, without changing career!:Whatever_

Over the summer, it is noticeable that the UV from the sun helps the areas on my elbows and knees. Although you have to watch sunburn on those areas!

Any tips on diet/products etc. from resident Docs. and fellow sufferers?

Hello

Although I don't actually believe in such things, my wife went to a Chinese doctor and got what looked like the left-overs of a forest floor to boil every day and drink as 'tea'. This went on for a month and actually cleared up the psoriasis.

She still gets the occasional bout, and does the same thing. But it has come back perhaps twice in the last ten years.

Steve

A long time ago I posted a note about some stuff I had come across but can't now find the link. Which doesn't help but this old thread may be worth a look?

https://www.scoobynet.com/psoriasis-...ight=Psoriasis

Have a look at the following forum if you haven't done so already, might find some useful information on there.

http://www.psoriasis-help.org.uk/cgi-bin/yabb/YaBB.cgi

Just an update to what I posted on the Biggins thread.


At the time, I wasn't using anything but it got to the stage where it was all over my torso/legs and I got a bit fed up.

E45 applied daily helped a bit but I went to the doctors and got some Dovonex which really cleared things up. Problem was that the psoriasis was still coming up and I ran out of Dovonex. Back to E45.

Anyhow, I heard about a year ago that cheese might be a contributory factor. I have always loved my cheeses and used to eat a daily amount in my sandwiches etc. I drastically cut back on cheese and no longer really have it at all. I also got a repeat perscription of Dovonex. My psoraisis has really cut back such that I have currently only a couple of spots which get a daily dab of Dovonex. The difference this time is that the spots are no longer appearing as rapidly as prior to giving up cheese - by a large percentage.

The reason apparently is that cheese builds up in your body over time (or something in it does - I'm not a scientist!) and by keeping on eating it, upsets the body balance in some way leading to psoraisis.

I can now go swimming without feeling embarassed :)


I've also recently really cut back on alcohol which is potentially another contrib factor so interesting to see how I get on.

As to the head, I just use Aphosyl shampoo then E45 on the spots which isnt as greasy as it sounds! That combo works too but I think there is another new cream out there that can be used on sensitive areas like the face/scalp as it was offered to me but knowing that Dovonex/E45 worked for me, I didn't yet try it.

Do you drink alcohol, tea and smoke? If so, cut these out. Also try cutting out chillis in your food etc. A friend of mine did this and his condition has improved quite a lot :)

My sister has had since her early teens. She got it after a case of Hooping cough.
She went through absolute hell at school, as I'm sure you can appreciate Remster. It's Probably alot more stressful if your a girl, where looks are more important than us blokes. She used to come home from school in absolute buckets of tears, with all the cruel comments by other pupils.
She's been on all the creams (E45 etc), been in hospital many times for all the new treatments etc.

Stress is a major contributing factor for sufferers, and whenever my sister gets stressed for whatever reason (Usually boyfriend trouble) her Psoriasis get noticeably worse.
As far as I know, there is no cure for it, as if there was my sister would have had the treatment.

Your Doctor is correct in suggesting a career change to reduce the stress in your life. Obviously a career change is not possible for you, as you stated above. Maybe you could take time out on a night time to relax more, other than sitting in front of the TV. (I'm not saying you do, but it's just an example)
My sister relaxes by taking the dog out for a walk, while obviously getting fresh air. It's certainly not an answer but anything that help you de-stress or relax should help.
I also have a mate who suffers from it quite badly too.

Sorry to be of no real help, but I do know what your going through, albeit from a 3rd party.

Hope you find a treatment that helps. Good luck

i have suffered for years with it, symptoms from neck line and torso to mild shin areas.

I use donnovex when its really bad - does the trick

but then i used some water based cream from chemist aqueous Cream - also used as massage cream by chiropracters etc.

This helped immensly.

As a side note sufferers can progress onto another condition called anklyosis sponditis which i have recently been diagnosed with 5 years after mis diagnosis of my back problem.!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

if you suffer is psoriasis and have back pain get it checked out immediatly!!!!!!!!!!!

i only found out when i thought i had an eye infection - which again mis diagnosed - visited hospital and turns out it was Iritis a swelling of retina!!! (not good) this is a symptom of AS and psoriasis (sorry for spelling)

any way thats my 2 pennies worth get in sun or on a sun bed that helps too, avoid stimulants red bull etc, i drink and it does make it flare up but hey i am not gonan give drinking up ;-)

My wife suffers - though it is mild. She found acupunture helped (after one session the patch on her knee virutally disappeared).

She's also found that Sudacrem (cream for baby bots) works wonders in calming the itch and angryness down.

Thought this was that film with George Clooney :wonder:

I got a type called gutade or something for a few months, brought on by stress. Spent a fortune seeing doctors, dermatologists, buying creams etc. You know in the end I spent about 4 x 12 mins in a standing sun bed thingy (tanning salon or something like that) Sorted it completely and never came back. Now I don't know if it will work for all, and some would argue about cancer risks etc, but at the end of the day we all die eventually! Might be worth a go to see how it works. Good luck

Hello Remster,

I am a doctor with an interest in dermatology.

Psoriasis affects about 2% of the population in the UK, most (80%) of whom have chronic plaque psoriasis - which from your description is what you have. 50% of those with chronic plaque psoriasis with have some degree of nail involvement, (pitting, thickening of the nail, lifting of the nail from the nail bed, yellow/brown "oil spot" colouration), and 80% will have some scalp involvement (actually the commonest site of psoriasis involvement of then all)

There is little scientific evidence to support dietary manipulation having a great effect on psoriasis, despite what various websites and complementary therapists would lead you to believe. Smoking and alcohol consumption certainly is strongly related to palmoplantar pustular psoriasis though (a rarer form affecting mostly women, with palms of hands and soles of feet being affected).
There is a 30% chance of a positive family history with chronic plaque psoriasis.

Treatment options for yourself would include

1) A descaling (or keratolytic) agent. 5% Salicylic acid in an emollient (moisturiser) base is excellent for this. Calmurid cream (available over the counter) also contains urea and is very good for particularly thick scale but it will sting on broken skin so needs to be used appropriately. Any moisturiser (E45, Aqueous cream, doublebase, certaben, diprobase etc) has a weak antipsoriatic effect and allows for greater penetration of an active cream by moisturising the epidermis.

2) Topical agents such as vitamin D analogues (dovonex) are generally well tolerated and don't irritate unaffected skin. These can be combined with a steroid in preparations such as dovobet, but withdrawal of the steroid may cause a rebound in the severity of psoriasis. If skin flexures are involved sometimes a weak steroid such as hydrocortisone may be enough since the scale may be removed by opposing skin and the area is well hydrated to allow for good absorption. Coal tar preparations and dithranol are very effective but best used in the hospital setting since there are problems with compliance and need to be applied sparing the unaffected skin. Plus they do smell and stain clothing and bedding etc.

3) Scalp involvement is best treated with either a steroid based lotion such as locoid, or a medicated shampoo. Most shampoos are coal tar based but one which isn't is Meted (salicylic acid) which can be bought over the counter without prescription (this is used for seborrhoeic dermatitis of the scalp also- the shampoo smells of coconut ) You can get dovonex (calcipitriol) as a scalp lotion on prescription, although I don't often prescribe it.

4) Nails are notoriously difficult to treat as topical treatments are rarely effective. If the nail fold at the base of the nail is involved then injecting with a steriod such as triamcinolone can cause regression but it is painful. Probably the best treatment for severe nail involvement is localised PUVA treatment- this involves taking a photosensitising agent (psorolens) followed by UVA light exposure - this treatment often requires many sessions and requires referral by your GP to a dermatology clinic offering the service. Obviously PUVA can be used for other areas of psoriasis involvement if not responding to topical measures

There are many other treatment options available for psoriasis which modify your body's immune response (since psoriasis is a a T-lymphocyte mediated) which can be used in the hospital outpatient setting. One of these Acitretin is sometimes used for severe nail involvement (but there are important side effects with this drug).

5) Finally there is no cure for psoriasis merely measures to control flare ups. Triggers do include stress though, and Marky 1 mentioned guttate psoriasis (a mild self limiting form of psoriasis - most common in the young) which is invariably triggered by a streptoccocal throat infection. Like eczema though, many sufferers do find the problem can go into remission for variable lengths of time and it may even cease to be an apparent problem.

If you are not happy with the treatment you are getting from your GP you could always ask to see a dermatologist for their opinion

All the best.

re the scalp the best thing i ever did was shave my hair off, compltelty cured the problem and a felt soso much better

MPC any ideas on best treatment for anklo sponditis ? spelt wrong i know?

i

I know I posted this on the previous thread, but Dovonex really does do the trick for me. I use the lotion on my scalp and nails and it does work, but you do have to be patient (excuse the pun!). Because you don't see the results straight away it can be frustrating and cause you to stop the treatment, but persevere.

Psoriasis that has been in a particular place for a long time seems to be much more reluctant to react, taking several weeks to show signs of improvement. Nails are paticularly difficult as they grow so slowly, but apply the lotion first thing in the morning and last thing at night around the edge of the nails and it will respond eventually. It is also important to keep using it when the psoriasis disappears, because it has a tendency to reappear, almost overnight.

Once you have got it under control, things get much easier - as soon as you see a new patch developing, start applying Dovonex and it usually disappears within days. If you don't like the sticky patches caused by creams and ointments, stick with the lotion, because it still works.

I gave up on coal tar shampoo years ago, now I just use the same stuff as my wife! :)

I was told I had this around 11 years ago but fianlly this year it was confrimed as foliculitus declavans. Apparently symptoms are very similar and had many of the same treatments.

Smokig and drinking and pushing myself to hard made a huge difference. I had a major car accident in Dec 04 and had terrible trouble sleeping not only through the fractures but does to the itchiness brought on by the stress.

I have found getting outdoors more and trying to unwinds has helped vastly, now going fishing most weekends and have finaly seen a good dermotologist who tried some new treatment that has pretty much sorted it. Shame it was mis-diagnosed sveral times over the last 10 years as I might have kept more of my hair !


AllanB

http://www.clinicalevidence.org/cewe.../1706/1706.jsp

I like the above summaries for all sorts of problems as they weigh up the evidence for what works and what doesn't and you can drill down into the detail as required.