What Is Psoriasis Disease?

Psoriasis is a chronic inflammatory (autoimmune) disease of the skin, where the sufferer experiences a process of skin changes that are too fast. Psoriatic skin disease is characterized by red patches with rough and thick scales.

Causes of psoriasis

Psoriatic skin disease is caused by autoimmune, in which T cells (immune cells in the body) become activated and produce inflammatory substances, such as TNF-alpha which will then interact with skin cells, resulting in abnormal proliferation and differentiation in skin cells.

Some environmental conditions or certain factors can also worsen or trigger psoriasis, such as trauma (scratching, friction), infection (streptococcal bacteria, HIV ), hormonal disorders, emotional stress, medications, metabolic disorders, sunlight, alcohol and smoking.

Symptoms of Psoriasis

Psoriasis symptoms vary depending on the type you have. Some common symptoms for plaque psoriasis, the most common type of condition, include:

Red skin plaques, often covered with silver scales; these lesions may be itchy and painful, sometimes cracked and bleeding. In severe cases, irritated skin plaques will grow and merge into one another, forming a large area.
Nail disorders, including changes in color and pitting of the nails can also occur.

Scales or scales on the scalp

Psoriasis is a disease that can be associated with psoriatic arthritis, psoriasis that causes pain and swelling in the joints. The National Psoriasis Foundation estimates that between 10-30 percent of people with psoriasis also have psoriasis arthritis.

Other forms of psoriasis include:

Pustular psoriasis, characterized by red and scaly skin on the palms or feet with small pustules
Gutata psoriasis, which often starts in childhood or young adulthood, is characterized by small, red spots, especially on the back and limbs. Triggers of this condition may be respiratory infections, sore throat, tonsils , stress, skin sores, and use of anti-malaria drugs and beta-blockers.
Inverse psoriasis, characterized by red lesions, bright shiny lesions that appear in the folds of the skin, such as the armpits, groin area, and under the breast
Erythrodermic psoriasis, characterized by periodic skin lesions, reddish fire from the skin and shedding of scales; this form of psoriasis is triggered by withdrawal from systemic treatment of psoriasis, severe burning skin, infections, and certain medications. This condition requires immediate medical treatment because it can cause severe illness.

Effects of Psoriasis

Usually sufferers often feel itchy on the skin, pain, skin feels tight and even bleeding on the skin. In contrast to normal skin changes in humans which usually last for 3 to 4 weeks, the skin goat process in psoriasis patients occurs rapidly, which is about 2-4 days, even faster.

This disease is not clinically life-threatening and also not contagious, but because of the occurrence can occur anywhere in the body, so it can reduce the quality of life of the sufferer.

In addition psoriasis skin disease can also interfere with a person's personal and social life, especially if the disease affects certain areas, such as the face, palms, feet or genitals.

Psoriasis Treatment

People who suffer from psoriasis know that this condition is uncomfortable and in this form of skin disease it is difficult to treat and can cause frustration. This condition comes and goes in the cycle of remission and recurrence for a lifetime.

Although there are other drugs and therapies that can help clear red, scaly, thickened patches of skin that are characteristic of psoriasis, there is no cure to prevent or relieve them.

According to the Journal of the American Academy of Dermatology (2008), psoriasis sufferers also have the possibility of suffering from other more dangerous diseases, such as cardiovascular disease, hypertension , diabetes , cancer, depression and obesity .Therefore, psoriasis patients are recommended to do a complete and regular examination, as well as treatment as early as possible.

There are a variety of treatments for psoriasis skin diseases, ranging from external medicine (tropical), photo therapy and systemic treatment. External treatment can be performed on patients with mild psoriasis, with an area of skin disorders less than 5%, while photo therapy is usually done to treat psoriasis that works with external treatment.

Systemic treatment is usually intended for psoriasis at moderate to severe levels.Etanercept is a type of systemic drug which is a biological agent, works by binding to TNF-alpha, so as not to cause abnormal activation of skin cells, so it can improve the symptoms of psoriasis.