The most common symptom of psoriasis is the formation of psoriatic plaques, which form from the inflamed areas of the skin. However, the disease can manifest itself not only on the skin. Let's understand how psoriasis begins, how it proceeds and what are the signs of psoriasis.
Most often, the first symptoms of psoriasis appear at a young age, but psoriasis can overtake a person even at an older age. The early symptoms of psoriasis can be subtle: the disease can begin with lesions on small areas of the skin, often on the folds of the limbs or scalp. Therefore, many patients may not notice the first manifestations. Does psoriasis skin itch? In fact, one of the signs of psoriasis is itching. Moreover, at first a person can feel only itching and tightness, and only then red spots begin to appear on the skin.
The course of psoriasis greatly affects the quality of human life. Many patients experience not only physical but also psychological discomfort. However, modern medicine can effectively contain the manifestations of the disease. New drugs for psoriasis, developed in the 21st century, in particular, genetically modified biological drugs (GIBP), make it possible to completely eliminate the manifestations of the disease and lead a productive life.
What is psoriatic plaque?
Psoriatic plaques are the most common symptom of psoriasis. Plaques are enlarged, inflamed areas of red skin that protrude above the surface of healthy skin and are covered with a layer of whitish flakes. Plaque can be painful, itchy, cracked, and bleed.
Psoriasis. signs
Manifestations of psoriasis on the skin and nails
Skin
- Inflamed plaques with redness.
- The plates are often covered with whitish scales.
- The plaques can be painful and itchy.
- Sometimes they break and bleed.
- Scattered plaques may appear on the scalp.
- The plaques can grow and merge with each other, covering a large area of the skin. In severe cases, the entire skin is one large plaque. This condition is called erythroderma.
Nail
- Nails change color or depressions, dots or streaks appear on the nail plate.
- Over time, the nail thickens and changes color to grayish, yellow, or brown. It can collapse and bleed.
- The nail can flake off and come off. The skin under such a torn nail is thickened due to the formation of a psoriatic plaque here.
The most common symptoms of psoriasis
Itching and bleeding with psoriasis
Itching and burning of the skin are common symptoms of psoriasis affecting 90% of patients. Itching caused by psoriasis is different from itching caused by other skin conditions. The itching in psoriasis can be very intense and can also occur in those areas of the skin where there are no visible plaques. Scratching of the skin resulting from itching in psoriasis can cause new rashes to appear as a result of mechanical trauma to the skin.
The appearance of cracks in the skin and bleeding with psoriasis
Psoriatic plaques can appear anywhere on the skin. Sometimes they break when the skin becomes very dry on the plaque. As the plaque increases, the cracks expand. As they get bigger, they can go deeper into the dermis, the layer of skin where the capillaries are located. Then the capillaries get damaged and burst and the plaques begin to bleed.
The first symptoms of psoriasis can occur anywhere, but most of the time the skin starts to crack and bleed. Place of events:
- elbows;
- knees;
- brushes;
- palms and soles.
Pustules with psoriasis
Pustules with a white or yellowish liquid inside, which appear on the psoriatic plaques, are the main symptom of pustular psoriasis. This is a rare form of psoriasis and only 2% of patients develop pustules. Pustular psoriasis is a very dangerous condition. It can cause serious complications, so it requires urgent complex treatment and referral to a specialist.
How are pustules formed? How does pustular psoriasis start?
- First, with pustular psoriasis, plaques form, consisting of dry, red skin that is painful to touch.
- Then pus-filled pustules form on the plaques.
- The pustules quickly merge with each other, forming large blisters.
- Then they dry out and peel off, leaving dry skin underneath, on which they can soon reappear.
Teardrop plaques for psoriasis
Small reddish or pinkish scaly lumps - patches of skin that look like droplets - are a hallmark symptom of teardrop psoriasis. A patient can experience from a couple to hundreds of teardrop-shaped elements. Lumps all over the skin, but most often occur on:
- shoulders;
- stomach;
- backards;
- hands;
- legs;
- scalp;
- ears;
- face.
Symptoms of guttate psoriasis develop fairly quickly, over a period of several days. Sometimes the teardrop-shaped plaques cause itching in psoriasis. Usually such elements are small, no more than 10 mm in width.
Often, drip psoriasis flares up after an infection, primarily of the respiratory tract.
Pain with psoriasis
Pain in the projection of a rash occurs when the skin is damaged and cracked due to excessive thickening caused by inflammation and rampant growth of keratinocytes. As a result, the nerve endings in the dermis become irritated and send a pain signal to the brain.
But pain appears not only due to mechanical damage to the skin - the inflammation that occurs in the body with psoriasis affects how the brain perceives pain. In addition, each person has an individual threshold for pain sensitivity, so pain in patients with the same picture of the disease can cause a different reaction.
42% of patients complain of pain in projection of lesions caused by psoriasis. To a greater extent, this symptom is common among:
- women;
- elderly people;
- patients with severe psoriasis;
- patients who have had psoriasis for a long time;
- patients with concomitant psoriatic diseases.
Peeling (dandruff) with psoriasis
The scalp psoriasis plaques are hidden and may not be visible. However, as with other areas of the body, psoriatic plaques flake off, forming dandruff-like scales. Don't confuse psoriatic flaking with dandruff, as dandruff is caused by a fungal infection and psoriasis is caused by inflammation. Therefore, these symptoms need to be treated in different ways.
Just like other psoriasis symptoms, scaling occurs during exacerbation and disappears during remission. Exacerbation of scalp psoriasis appears for various reasons:
- cold weather;
- dry air;
- fatigue.
Comment on what to do when peeling and inflammation occurs in psoriasis
Changes in the nails with psoriasis
- Half of patients with psoriasis develop nail psoriasis, and in patients with psoriatic arthritis this symptom occurs in 80% of cases. As a rule, the defeat of the nail plates precedes the development of psoriatic arthritis.
- Typically, nail psoriasis accompanies other types of psoriasis on the skin. Only 5-10% of patients with nail psoriasis do not have lesions on the skin.
- Nail psoriasis occurs in several patients, regardless of their age, gender or disease duration.
- The changes can affect all or part of the nail plate. They appear on both one and several nail plates, and more often on the hands.
- Nail psoriasis usually accompanies ordinary (vulgar) psoriasis and psoriatic arthritis.
- Psoriasis affects the condition of the nails in different ways. They can grow faster or get thicker. The nail plate often turns white, yellow or brown.
- On the nail, depressions and thimble-like stripes appear.
- As the psoriatic process progresses, the nail begins to deteriorate and is eventually rejected, losing the connection with the nail bed.
- Damage to the nail causes unpleasant and painful sensations that significantly reduce the quality of life.