Psoriasis is a disease that affects the condition of the skin.
Psoriasis is a skin condition that affects around 125 million people across the world, according to World Psoriasis Day. It causes inflammation of the skin and appears as red plaques covered by silvery flakes of skin. It normally occurs around the elbows, knees and scalp. It is not a contagious condition and is normally passed on genetically.
Origins
The first recorded mention of psoriasis is by the Greek physician Hippocrates who lived in the 4th and 5th centuries B.C. It is then mentioned 400 years later by the Roman author Cornelius Celsus who linked it with impetigo, which is an infectious disease that causes red patches and blisters on the skin.
Identification
The disease was next mentioned by the dermatologist Joseph Jacob Plenck in Vienna in 1775. He described it as being part of the group of desquamative human diseases, those that create scaly or scale-like conditions on the skin. It wasn't until English dermatologist Robert Willan investigated the disease in the late 18th century that it was categorized as a separate disease. Willan described the two types, the first being Leprosa Graecorum, which described the condition when the skin was scaly, and the second being Psora Leprosa which was a more eruptive version.
Naming
The condition was first called psoriasis in 1841 by Viennese dermatologist called Ferdinand Hebra. He had been working on the notes by Robert Willan and coined the term using the Greek word "psora," meaning to itch.
Treatments
In the 19th century the first kinds of treatment for psoriasis included tar, dithranol, salicylic acid and salts from the Dead Sea. Ultraviolet light was discovered as an aid in the 1920s and during the 1950s a range of topical and oral steroids were discovered that could help the disease. In the 1990s researchers discovered vitamin D treatments as well as retinoids, while in the 21st century laser treatments have helped psoriasis sufferers.
Significance
Every year since 2004 World Psoriasis Day has been held on Oct. 29. It is a day dedicated to the estimated 125 million suffers of the disease around the world. The aim of the day is to give more awareness to the condition and to raise its profile. It is also designed to increase understanding of psoriasis amongst the general population.
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