Causes & Symptoms of Psoriasis

There are theories as to what brings on psoriasis but science does not know for sure what causes it. There are strong indications that a person's immune system is somehow involved. It is believed to be what is called an immune-mediated condition, with the immune system of the body transmitting signals that affect different regions on a person. It is thought that the body of someone with psoriasis has an immune system that mistakenly spurs the growth of skin cells from their usual time frame of 28 to 30 days to as rapid as three to six days. These skin cells then pile up on top of each other at the surface, resulting in the lesions that are characteristic of psoriasis.

Researchers found it significant that many people with psoriasis also have a close relative with the condition. This led them to eventually identify a gene that seems responsible for the problem. Other immune-related conditions such as rheumatoid arthritis also appear to be linked to a faulty gene, but in psoriasis it is thought that something still has to trigger the outbreak of the disease. It has been proven that certain medications, stress, injury to the skin, infections and various other factors can all trigger psoriasis.

Four out of five people that suffer from psoriasis have a type called plaque psoriasis. In this kind, the skin becomes dry in the affected region and turns red. These areas are known as plaques and they will appear anywhere on the body, most typically on the arms and legs but sometimes in places such as inside a person's mouth or on their genitals. The plaques will then become covered with scales that are silver in color, which build up before flaking away. The area will be painful and itch quite a bit. Bad cases of plaque psoriasis can make the skin near joints become cracked and bleed.

In nail psoriasis, the toenails and the fingernails of a person can experience abnormal growth and become discolored. They can loosen away from the nail bed and even deteriorate away. Scalp psoriasis exhibits symptoms such as itchy reddened regions on a person's scalp that have almost white scales that flake away when scratched. Strep throat can trigger a form of psoriasis known as Guttate psoriasis, in which small sores develop on the arms, legs, scalp and torso. These can be covered by scales but are not as thickened as other forms of the disease. Inverse psoriasis precipitates smooth and red patches that feel inflamed to appear in the groin, armpits and near the genitals of people, especially ones that are overweight.

Psoriatic arthritis is a very unpleasant kind of psoriasis. It comes with the lesions that develop scales and flake away, but also brings with it discolored nails and swollen and painful joints. This type of the disease can also have eye conditions such as pink eye, or conjunctivitis, associated with it. The arthritis that this psoriasis brings on is not as severe in most instances as typical arthritis, but in extreme cases it can be very painful and cause crippling deformities.