My Psoriasis Isn't getting better...

[ariellezine]

Hi, I'm 16yr old female, I weigh about 110-112lbs and I'm 5'7''. I've had Psoriasis for about a year now, and It started off on the left side of my head by my ears and is now all over my scalp. It doesn't seem to be going away. I've tried a lot of the home treatments that I found on the national psoriasis foundation.com but none of them seemed to work permanently. I tried salicylic acid treatments and nothing has helped. I am loosing my hair and I am afraid that the Psoriasis is going to begin to spread to my neck and other places on my body.
I am taking Predisone right now for my Athsma (along with Albuterol), and I read that Predisone may help Psoriasis but after treatment, the Psoriasis is likely to come back worse.
Is there ANYTHING that can help me get rid of my Psoriasis?

[BhumikaMD]

Hi,

Psoriasis is generally a disease of the skin and leads to development of patches of well defined scaly, flaky areas on the skin. Areas involved usually are knees, elbows, shin and extensor portions of the body.

It has a genetic and immune component related. It is not contagious.

Lesions in psoriasis are recurrent in quite a few cases and therefore require long term medication.

As a first step, medicated ointments or creams like corticosteroids, cvutamin D analogues, anthralin, etc, called topical treatments, are applied to the skin.

If topical treatment fails to achieve the desired goal then the next step is to expose the skin to ultraviolet (UV-B) radiation or PUVA therapy (PSORALEN +UV-A). This is called phototherapy.

The third step involves the use of medications which are taken by pills or injection including methotrexate, cyclosporine and retinoids.. This approach is called systemic treatment.

Over time, psoriasis can become resistant to a specific therapy. Treatments may be periodically changed to prevent resistance developing.

More information on Psoriasis may be found at :

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Psoriasis

and

http://www.emedicinehealth.com/psoriasis/article_em.htm

Let us know if you need any further information.

Regards

[LJ84]

Hi, I also have psoriasis of the scalp and it is driving me crazy!  It has also spread to my ears and the back of my neck. None of the shampoos work and the treatments don't even give me any relief.  I was told by my dermatologist that psoriasis may never go away.  I heard as a last resort about having the steroid injected in your scalp may do the job. I have to ask more about this.

[Chantele]

Hi!
I'm 19 and have psoriasis too and for me it started in the scalp and now I have it everywhere and have been diagnosed with 2 different kinds of psoriasis (plaque, flexure). I know that the sooner you start to so something about it the less it can "travel". I started with steroid creams and tar shampoos, but they did nothing for me (everyone's different!). I did the light therapy for a few months but it was painful and left dark spots that are still here years later. I took Humira for 7 months and my psoriasis was totally gone from everywhere! (except for the flexure). Well it doesn't work for me anymore so I am going to try something else. All I'm trying to say is get on top of it! Don't let it spread and get out of hand because it will be harder to control. Best wishes and regards!

>Chantele