Medical Disorders

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Medical Disorders

Gluten-Free Craze a ‘Double-Edged Sword’ for Celiac Patients

The gluten-free diet craze is both reassuring and upsetting to people with celiac disease who are...
Stigma Another Burden for Many With Psoriasis

Though psoriasis is not contagious, many Americans shun people with the skin condition, new research indicates....
Tai Chi Beats Aerobics for Fibromyalgia Pain

If you suffer from fibromyalgia, new research suggests tai chi might do more than aerobic exercise...

More Medical Disorders News

New Gene Therapy May Be Cure for ‘Bubble Boy’ Disease
Babies born with the immune-system ravaging “bubble boy” disease have had to spend their...
- Posted December 10, 2017
- 4
Brush Up on Fall Allergies Before Tackling the Leaves
Fall yardwork can stir up allergies, but there are ways to reduce the risk...
- Posted November 26, 2017
- 25
Arthritis Can Strike Children
In these young patients, joint inflammation caused by overactive immune system
- Posted October 18, 2017
- 14
Where There’s Type 1 Diabetes, Celiac Disease May Follow
Screening for early signs of both conditions should be done at birth, study suggests
- Posted October 10, 2017
- 13
Coffee Doesn’t Help Parkinson’s Motor Disorders
Caffeine has no impact, says long-term trial that reverses earlier findings
- Posted September 28, 2017
- 7
Brain Disconnects Spotted in Parkinson’s Patients With Visual Hallucinations
Scans showed areas with decreased connectivity
- Posted September 28, 2017
- 19
Lady Gaga’s Fibromyalgia Puts Illness in the Spotlight
Daily struggle with chronic pain, disability defines patients' lives, experts say
- Posted September 22, 2017
- 6

Are You Living with Psoriasis?

A growing knowledge of the skin disease called psoriasis is leading to greater treatment choices, including personalized therapies, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration reports.

Psoriasis is an immune system disorder that causes overproduction of skin cells, resulting in scaling, pain, swelling, redness and heat. The condition affects about 7.5 million Americans.

“As we better understand the disease, researchers know more about what specific factors to target in order to develop effective treatments,” FDA dermatologist Dr. Melinda McCord said in an agency news release.

There is no cure for psoriasis, so the main goals of treatments are to stop skin cell overproduction and reduce inflammation. Current therapies include medicines applied to the skin (topical), light treatment (phototherapy), or drugs taken by mouth or given by injection.

Doctors used to take a step-by-step approach, starting patients with mild to moderate psoriasis on topical therapy. If that was ineffective, doctors moved on to phototherapy or drug treatment.