Important plaque psoriasis questions you need answers to
According to independent studies (as well as, those corroborated by the American Journal of Medicine), anywhere between 3 million and 7 million adults in the United States alone are currently living with psoriasis – and many of them are forced to contend with plaque psoriasis, one of the most invasive and difficult to treat forms of the disease.
Sometimes known as psoriasis vulgaris (with essentially translates to “common psoriasis”), the overwhelming majority of people worldwide that are dealing with this skin condition are fighting a plaque based psoriasis problem.
In fact, about 80% of all individuals dealing with psoriasis are dealing with common psoriasis – though it can present itself in a variety of different shapes, forms, and symptoms, which make it a nightmare to properly diagnose and treat.
Thankfully, researchers and medical professionals have been working overtime to find ways to destroy psoriasis from the inside out (as well as, topically), and much of their research has resulted in significant breakthroughs in just the last few years.
We are still quite far from having a widespread or mass-produced psoriasis cure, but the odds of us finding that “Holy Grail” are a lot better than they’ve ever been before. It may not be all that long until people are no longer forced to have to worry about psoriasis again.
But until that happens, it’s important for you to understand exactly what you’re dealing with – as well as, the approved and accepted treatment solutions out there that allow you to live as close to a symptom-free lifestyle as possible.
Let’s jump right into some of the questions that you’ll need to have answers to!
What is plaque psoriasis?
Plaque psoriasis is the most common type of psoriasis that individual will have to deal with, and usually presents itself with some pretty well-defined symptoms.
These symptoms can include (but certainly aren’t limited to):
• Areas of incredibly dry, patchy skin that looks as though it is covered in white skin plaque
• Red and irritated raised skin all over the body or in clusters and splotches
• Flaky and silvery build up areas on the scalp (this is where the plaque name comes from)
• Itchy, painful, and cracking skin all over the body
• Yellow or discolored fingernails that are loose or even slough off at the slightest touch
Obviously, common psoriasis isn’t exactly a walk in the park for anyone that has to fight it on a regular basis.
What causes plaque psoriasis?
Worse still is that scientists and researchers still have no real definitive answers as to what causes psoriasis – and that’s what’s really holding back the medical industry from producing a viable solution to destroy this condition once and for all.
There are a variety of different theories as to what causes psoriasis symptoms to present themselves, and it’s importance to really figure out which ones are specific to your condition into your lifestyle to understand how to most effectively treat and alleviate these symptoms whenever they show up.
One of the biggest “flashpoints” behind common psoriasis is stress, and pretty much every professional dermatologist and medical professional believes that there is a related link between psoriasis (and other skin conditions and diseases) and the sensation of stress, pressure, and anxiety.
If you notice major flareups of common psoriasis to occur when you are feeling stressed out (or you notice these flareups immediately after periods of extreme stress), you’re going to want to do absolutely everything you can to control your emotions to reduce the stress and pressure that you’re contending with.
It isn’t going to be easy, but taking yoga, going for regular massages, or finding other ways to unwind and relax will help you fight off psoriasis going forward.
Some researchers also believe that major changes in weather (especially seasonal changes or significant fluctuations in temperature and humidity), have a big impact on psoriasis as well. This research is a little bit more tenuous than the link between stress, pressure, and skin issues – but there is a definitive link that exists.
You may not be able to completely and totally relocate yourself whenever poor weather strikes, but it may be advantageous to your overall lifestyle to find a relatively stable climate and make your home of operations there.
Of course, anything that you ingest is also going to have a tremendous impact on every part of your body – including your skin. Certain dietary issues (including all allergies, even the most mild), can cause psoriasis to flare up seemingly out of nowhere, so you’ll want to be on the lookout for specific foods that you eat that cause you a bit of trouble.
Keeping a food journal for a week or two (or documenting all of your foods whenever you deal with psoriasis symptoms), can help you to find the culprits that are causing you the most trouble. From there, simply wipe them out and see if that has the beneficial impact you’re looking for.
Why haven’t they been able to cure plaque psoriasis?
There are a whole bunch of reasons as to why they haven’t been able to cure plaque psoriasis yet, but a lot of it comes down to the fact that they still aren’t quite sure of why this skin disease and condition exists in the first place.
There used to be a firm belief in the medical community that psoriasis was purely a hereditary condition, but further and most recent research illustrates that this may not be as concrete or as set in stone as the medical community used to believe.
Researchers do think that there is some sort of genetic link to these conditions, but even they aren’t quite sure of where the genetic mutation is coming from, why it presents itself in some and not others, or what types of changes in the body cause psoriasis issues to flare up in some while causing issues for others.
Basically, the research is still ongoing, and while we’ve yet to figure out a cure for this condition, there are research teams all over the planet working double overtime to make that kind of solution a viable option for everyone.
What kinds of risk factors do severe plaque psoriasis issues bring to the table?
Common psoriasis brings a variety of different issues to the table all on its own, but severe instances of this condition (those that threaten 20% or more of total skin surface area) can start to have very real and potentially dangerous health side effects.
Psoriasis that begins to take over your body, or even just starts to take over large portions of your body, can be debilitating all on its own – but when it starts to manifest itself in a plaque-kind-of-covering, things get pretty dicey.
Not only is your skin going to be incredibly tender, very dry, and ridiculously uncomfortable, but it’s also going to be more susceptible to cracks, fissures, and open wounds that can become infected.
If that’s to happen and the bacteria that is infecting your body is to “piggyback” on the psoriasis, you can really be looking at some systemic health issues that will be difficult to control.
This is why it is of such importance that you seek out trusted medical help if you feel as though you are dealing with a severe instance of common psoriasis. This is not something that you can afford to fool around with, or something that you can try to medicate on your own with home remedies.
Will traditional psoriasis treatment solutions work on plaque based psoriasis?
Traditional psoriasis options will usually work on plaque-based psoriasis problems, though they may not be as wildly effective if the psoriasis has already spread to a significant portion of your skin.
In these instances, you’ll likely have to take advantage of somewhat invasive medical solutions, one of which may be the application of light therapy to the impacted areas.
In this type of treatment option, you’ll be covered in a psoriasis treatment (usually salicylic acid or some type of coal tar-based body lotion or wash) and then be subjected to ultraviolet light treatment. This solution has proven to be very impactful in eliminating systemic issues of psoriasis, but it also has a number of risk factors that it brings to the table – risk factors that you’ll need to be aware of.
Some studies have suggested that light therapy treatment options will increase the risks of skin cancer in the future, though more research is necessary to really substantiate these theories. Even still, it’s not exactly the kind of therapy option that you’ll want to turn to without some real consideration.
What should I do if I’m dealing with this type of psoriasis?
If you are dealing with common psoriasis, you’ll want to speak to your medical professional about the issues in your next checkup or when you have had enough of the symptoms.
Should the symptoms themselves not be all that severe, you may want to look into home remedies or over-the-counter options at clearing up psoriasis, just to see whether or not they’ll work for you.
If, on the other hand, you’re dealing with a systemic attack of severe plaque based psoriasis, you cannot afford to delay. Either contact your trusted medical professional immediately or get yourself to an emergency medical facility. This is not something that you can afford to let grow into a larger issue.