Psoriasis In Children - What Does It Look Like In Children?

Psoriasis in children is less common in childhood unlike eczema. The exact knowledge and facts of Psoriasis in Children/childhood is not well known, and there is a difference between in reports and studies. Generally, up to 33% of patients with psoriasis report the start of disease before the age of 20. One big survey found that in 12 percent of adult patients the onset began before the age of 10, and in 25 percent, began between the ages of 10 and 19. A recent Australian survey reported the largest number of Psoriasis in Children ever, and approximately 25% of them the onset of this disease was before the age of two.

If psoriasis starts in childhood, the lesions are normally plaques—with raised, red scaly areas, however these can be thinner and less scaly than with adults. Plus Psoriasis in Children is reported to be itchier (pruritic) than in adults. Psoriasis in children is quite often started by infection, and guttate psoriasis is not uncommon. This type of psoriasis presents with multiple scaling and raised areas of skin that grow quickly on the body; however, it can disappear completely with no reoccurrence.

The good news is that psoriasis,normally will not affect your child's health, growth or development. The majority of children with mild disease, together with the proper treatment can be well controlled and this limits the impact on their emotional and physical health. Children with a more severe, extensive or chronic forms of psoriasis, should realize that there are a number of new treatments being investigated, and that the future for effective control of psoriasis has never been brighter.