Psoriasis - Understanding the Most Wide Spread Chronic Dermatitis

Psoriasis is the most wide spread chronic dermatitis. According to statistics, about 2-3% of the total population of the Earth has psoriasis - approximately 120 - 180 million people! For instance: Canada - about 1 million people, Great Britain - about 1 million, Scandinavian countries - 2 million people, germany - 2 million people and the U.S.A. - 7 million people.

Psoriasis as a word derived from the Greek word "psora" - "itch".

Psoriasis is also more frequently recorded in locations of a moderate and cold climate and it is relatively less frequent in the tropical countries.

there's countries, where psoriasis is encountered less frequently - for example Japan, China - less than 1% of the population.

More statistics here: Statistics of Psoriasis

In rural areas the frequency of psoriasis is usually 3-4 times less frequent than in the urban areas.

The average cycle of shedding of normal skin cells occurs approximately in 4 weeks, with psoriasis this method takes only 4-5 days. The work of psoriasis usually has a sharply expressed seasonality. Psoriasis can be located in any sections of the skin, but predominantly the plaques are located symmetrically on the knees and elbows, on scalp and on the skin of the rest of the body.

Psoriasis appears on skin as inflamed lesions, peeling and scales. The scales can be easily removed, and beneath them there lays an yet denser scale. In addition to the skin psoriasis may as well strike the nails and joints.

Psoriasis develops due to lots of factors, with the prevailing importance of genetic factors.

Psoriasis is a chronic condition, which stays with a person for their whole life, and is accompanied by the variation of flare-ups and remissions. Psoriasis is a non-contagious disease.

Countless famous people, including Ben Franklin, Henry Ford, Joseph Stalin and lots of others had psoriasis. In the 1930’s, Winston Churchill, who as well had psoriasis for lots of years, proposed a golden monument for the person, who cures this disease.

Psoriasis is not fatal, but it causes plenty of problems for the sufferer. Psoriasis may bring serious complications; it causes commonplace inconveniences, which start dominating the life and the thoughts of a person and affect the quality of life. Usually these are cosmetic, which limit the choice of the selection of hair-do, outfit, and the behavior. People with psoriasis often experience inferiority complexes. Being bothered by their appearance, they may become "people in a box": never in public, wear maximally closed outfits etc.