Marcela Moreno Wilches
Latin Agency for Medicine and Public Health News
Psoriasis is a condition in which there is an excessive growth of one of the layers of the skin, which is the epithelium. This excessive growth creates pearly or whitish plaques with a reddish base.
About 20 to 30% of patients with psoriasis may develop a complication or involvement of the joints and this is called psoriatic arthritis.
When psoriasis affects the toenails and toenails, the scalp reflects a higher risk of the patient presenting with psoriatic arthritis and detecting it as much as possible allows for greater preservation and less damage to the patient’s joints.
How to reduce the risk of the disease
Giving up habits such as smoking and reducing excess weight if present is essential to reduce the risk of psoriasis. In most cases, psoriasis occurs up to 5 years before the patient has joint pain or psoriatic arthritis.
The difference between psoriatic arthritis and plaque psoriasis
To understand the difference between these two medical conditions, Dr. Ricardo Gago, an expert in rheumatology, points out that “psoriatic arthritis largely involves the fingers and certain areas where the muscle joins the bone known as tendons or ligaments. Basically what differentiates one from the other are the symptoms, in the case of psoriatic arthritis there is an inflammation of the tendons and ligaments that make the whole finger look like a “sausage” because it inflames the whole, not so much the joint, but the whole finger and which is known as tenosynovitis or tactivity ”.
The specialist also highlights other symptoms, such as inflammation of the tendons, especially in the Achilles tendon or in the back of the ankle, near the heel, and inflammation in other areas, such as the front of the knee, hip, hip. chest or shoulder, especially in the area of the rotator cuff where swelling may occur.
Plaque psoriasis, on the other hand, causes dry, raised and reddened lesions on the skin, covered with gray scales. The plaques are itchy, can be painful and can appear anywhere on the body.
treatments
Treatments for these patients usually begin with creams or oils to hydrate or keep the area hydrated and stop epithelial growth.
Subsequently, immunosuppressive therapies may be used because it is an immunological condition, they may suggest tablets of methotrexate (MTX), a drug that modifies the disease, several times a week.
Cortisone for patients with severe arthritis may also be another alternative in treatment, however, it may worsen the results of plaque on the skin, so it should be used with extreme caution, for short periods and in doses. small, indicates the specialist.
Other immunosuppressive therapies
Mechanisms of action against TNF inhibitors of necrotizing tumor factor
Inhibitors of interleukin 23 (IL-23) which has very few side effects and is very effective in blocking the development of the disease.
Interleukin 17 (IL-17) inhibitors have been shown to be very effective treatments and a very favorable option for patients with this condition.
The importance of the Mediterranean diet
Dr. Gago emphasizes the importance of a balanced and healthy diet, in which there are no restrictions for the patient.
“The Mediterranean diet has proven to be one of the best anti-inflammatory drugs out there, in which processed foods are minimized and a balance is achieved between fish, red meat and different foods. It is a style of diet that I greatly favor, because it is quite complete, it complies, it is not as strict as other diets that do not say carbohydrates, without meat or not, it is quite balanced and allows you to have a high anti-inflammatory potential with a lot of moderation, ”he said.
recommendation
Perform stretches or a certain type of activity, resistance exercises and muscle toning as tolerated
Going to the pool and exercising in the water is favorable, because the joints do not receive the impact of other activities, such as running. In this case, the skin must be very well hydrated, as chlorine can affect it.