Skin diseases are unpleasant in themselves. And if even long-term systematic treatment does not guarantee a positive result, the situation turns into a real problem.
Psoriasis (squamous lichen) is a disease with a "rich" millennial history. Despite the confirmed, difficult-to-treat nature of the disease, everyone seems to be ready to help in healing.
Announcements about sensational drugs are full of every step, getting rid of the disease is promised by miracle devices and "innovative technologies", healers and Internet forums. Doctors-dermatologists also do not sleep and do everything possible, study and test new drugs, but they do not promise miracles as a result of treatment.
What is psoriasis
Psoriasis is referred to as dermatoses. In this chronic non-infectious disease, skin cell division occurs 28 times faster than it should be normal. The cells do not have time to fully mature, their intercellular communication is disrupted, which leads to thickening of the upper layers of the skin and the formation of pronounced flaking and plaques.
During the course of the disease, the cells of the immune system attack the skin's own cells, so the process is accompanied by chronic autoimmune inflammation. The formed large foci are able to form their own blood vessels, penetrated by capillaries, inside themselves.
The causes of psoriasis. Can they get infected?
For the first time, the process and course of psoriasis was described at the beginning of the 19th century by the English physician Robert Willen. The disease was finally differentiated from leprosy, its non-infectious nature was proved and, therefore, the impossibility of contracting it from another person. From that moment, active research began, which has not stopped until now. But, alas, without much result . . .
There are many versions of the onset of the disease, the main of them concerns the hereditary nature, but it has not been finally confirmed. It is known that psoriasis can occur at any age, and in recent years it has become noticeably "younger" and is recorded even in newborns.
Psoriasis symptoms
There are several types of psoriasis. The main - plaque (or ordinary) psoriasis - is detected in 80 percent of patients. It is characterized by the appearance of small scaly spots that grow and merge into large spots - psoriatic plaques. Their surface is covered with silvery-white scales, which are easily detached from the skin when brushing.
Plaques can be located on any part of the body - on the legs, back, shoulders, scalp and face, but initially appear in places subject to one or another friction: on the elbows, on the waist line (from the pressure of the belt and clothes), in places of pressuretight underwear. With exacerbation, the plaques grow, gradually spreading in different directions. As a rule, the process is systemic and occurs once or twice a year.
Periods of deterioration are associated with
- general weakening of the immune system,
- stress,
- dietary disorders and
- other reasons (cosmetics, unusual drink or food).
If untreated, common psoriasis can develop such unpleasant consequences as nail psoriasis, teardrop and exudative psoriasis, psoriatic arthritis, etc.
How to cure psoriasis
The first attempts to treat psoriasis were made in ancient Greece, where they discovered the beneficial effects of sunlight on skin condition. Also, ancient doctors used a mixture of oils and fatty acids, the remains of which were found near burials. In the Middle Ages, psoriasis was considered the "seal of the devil" and a kind of leprosy: people were isolated from society in leper colony, which led to a sad outcome.
Currently, the following concept has been formed: the patient requires compulsory observation by a dermatologist and systematic treatment, including taking B vitamins, calcium gluconate, nicotinic acid, antihistamines and anti-inflammatory drugs. Medicines are used to cleanse the liver, which plays an important role in the condition of the skin.
Appointments are strictly individual, taking into account concomitant diseases. A significant role is given to the external treatment of psoriasis, the purpose of which is to drown out the superficial process. Salicylic ointment is used in combination with hormonal agents, a new drug has recently been successfully tested - an ointment, an analogue of vitamin D. The latter is produced in the skin under the influence of sunlight, but its lack is one of the causes of pathological processes in psoriasis.
The ointment does not fundamentally solve the problem, but it noticeably improves the condition of the skin, relieves peeling and facilitates the course of the disease without the side effects that hormonal ointments are so rich in. Patients are advised to daily use moisturizing body creams, diet and vitamins, as well as annual spa treatment. Timely and regular therapy allows you to achieve a period of remission, that is, to drown out the manifestation of the disease for a long time.
The original method of treating psoriasis is the use of Garra rufa fish, which eat up the skin on psoriatic plaques without touching healthy areas. For the first time, fish began to be used in the thermal resort of Kangal (Turkey), but later they appeared in a number of clinics and beauty salons.
An alternative view of psoriasis treatment
Many people with psoriasis are exposed to stress and negative attitudes towards the world around them, which aggravate the course of the disease. It is much easier for those who were able to develop a positive attitude towards the disease and learned to live with it, preventing an exacerbation in time with adequate treatment. In this they are supported by a number of researchers who call to consider the disease as nothing more than a gift from nature.
It has been noticed that psoriasis patients look ten years younger than their peers and their body copes with wounds and internal diseases much faster than ordinary people. The increased proliferation of cells, which is guilty of the pathological process, plays a positive role in the healing stages.
The skin is protected from radiation and ultraviolet radiation by high levels of antioxidants, so people can spend hours in the sun without fear of "overdose". They are also protected from cancer, since defective, pathological cells quickly die and are replaced by healthy ones.
According to a biophysicist, the author of the most optimistic theory, psoriasis is a long-term experiment of nature. In his opinion, patients with psoriasis are carriers of the golden gene pool of mankind, which prepares nature for the future survival of people in extreme conditions. After all, the state of health of those whose cells are born and die at an extreme rate is resistant to many negative factors.
Be that as it may, psoriasis is not a reason for depression and limitation of your social activity. It is quite possible to "agree" with him, you just need to pay a little more attention to your health and the condition of your own skin. Moreover, participation in a world-scale experiment requires this.