Background: 
Psoriasis is a chronic debilitating disease affecting approximately one million Canadians. The objective of this study is to estimate the economic burden in $CDN (2008) of moderate to severe plaque psoriasis among Canadian adults.

Methods: 
Using a cross-sectional design, direct resource use, costs, lost productivity, and quality of life were obtained for 90 subjects diagnosed with psoriasis in three dermatology clinics in British Columbia, Ontario, and Québec. An Excel-based economic model was developed to project the annual cost of psoriasis, from the societal perspective.

Results: 
The estimated mean annual cost of psoriasis was $7999/subject (95% CI: $3563–$12,434) with direct costs accounting for 57%. Mean lost productivity costs, which accounted for 43% of the mean annual costs of psoriasis, were $3442/subject (95% CI: $1293–$5590).

Conclusion: 
Projecting the mean costs per patient to the afflicted population yields an estimated total annual cost of $1.7 billion (95% CI: $0.8–$2.6 billion) attributable to moderate to severe psoriasis in Canada. Understanding the interplay between direct costs, lost productivity, and quality of life is critical for accurately identifying and evaluating effective treatments for this disease.

Source: NO LINKS ALLOWED

Perrigo today announced that its partner, Cobrek Pharmaceuticals, Inc., received final approval from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration for its Abbreviated New Drug Application (ANDA) for betamethasone valerate foam 0.12%, the generic equivalent of Luxiq® Foam. Perrigo has manufactured the product and is preparing to commence commercial shipments on January 15, 2013, consistent with the date certain launch settlement. Cobrek was first to file, making the product eligible for 180 days of marketing exclusivity.

Betamethasone valerate foam 0.12% is indicated for the relief of corticosteroid-responsive skin conditions of the scalp (scalp psoriasis). Brand annual sales were approximately $40 million.

Perrigo's Chairman, President and CEO Joseph C. Papa stated, "This is our sixth product approval using a foam dosage form, which requires specialized development and manufacturing capabilities. It is an example of the excellent partnership we have with Cobrek and we are committed to making quality healthcare more affordable for our customers and drive value for our shareholders."

From its beginnings as a packager of generic home remedies in 1887, Perrigo Company, based in Allegan, Michigan, has grown to become a leading global provider of quality, affordable healthcare products. The Company develops, manufactures and distributes over-the-counter ("OTC") and generic prescription ("Rx") pharmaceuticals, nutritional products and active pharmaceutical ingredients ("API") and is the world's largest manufacturer of OTC pharmaceutical products for the store brand market. Perrigo's mission is to offer uncompromised "quality, affordable healthcare products", and it does so across a wide variety of product categories primarily in the United States, United Kingdom, Mexico, Israel and Australia, as well as certain other markets throughout the world, including Canada, China and Latin America.

Source: NO LINKS ALLOWED

Hello All! I'm virgomimi, a 55 year old married grandmother. I haven't been diagnosed with Psoriasis, but I'm pretty sure I have it, and I'm miserable. I was looking for an association of Psoriasis and full moons and found Fred's post of last year, so I registered. I can't wait to read on that, which is where I am headed right now! Will be talking with everyone soon!

Hello all, I'm going to give this forum thing a go as I am currently in need of a place 'to go'

I've had Plaque Psoriasis for around 6/7 years now - appeared in my mid 20's during a rather 'trying time' for the past three years it's hardly been a bother - possibly linked to meeting an amazing fella and actually being happy...

I've only had one other flare up in recent years - guttate(?!?) psoriasis, which covered every inch of me, which the doc possibly linked to a throat infection I had - but thankfully it disappeared as quickly as it appeared after about 8 weeks....

My worst psoriasis fears have however just been met.... plaques on my face. I feel like a vain prat being so bothered about it. I know there are many others - probably many others on this forum who suffer with much higher severity than I do, but the appearance of these plaques have sent my head west. I just want to hide.

I am guessing they have been triggered by watering eyes - I was suffering from blocked tear ducts for 3 months, and the constant tearing wrecked the skin below my eyes. It took so long for the eye hospital to sort out my treatment appointment (administration mess up)... I am so angry... I guess I'm looking for somebody to blame. The eyes are now working again - but the plaques are spreading.

I'm a 30 something female who loves make-up and works within the realm of fashion... I look like a cadaver. I can't put anything on it to cover it.... I feel ugly and frustrated. The bf has been supportive as always telling my I'm beautiful and that 'it' will go - I need to stay positive... But it's so hard!

Booking myself in with the docs tomorrow... though previous experience with treatments not working doesn't fill me with hope.

I actually usually a positive happy type who's usual role is to council and support my friends ha! (I'll tell a joke on my next post).

Sorry for the warble - have never really used forums so I'm not quite sure how much or what to post!

xxx

Hey everyone, I am a bit down atm :(

Had P for 25 yrs, but following a bad flare in oct I am struggling. Got fatigue caused by P (according to GP). My bad news this morning that they can't offer me a derm appt for possibly upto 13 weeks has made me quite gloomy.

Did ring the hosp 2day but they can't/won't help as my referal was not an urgent 1. Rang surgery to try and sort that too. And rang the local Spire hosp to see if I could get in there and how much, they have appts nxt week but that is £140, and then what????

sorry to rant x

Hello!

I'm curious as to how people with psoriasis of the nails are coping.

I have had various toenails implicated, and they've been everything from a little yuck and clearing up after a few months to huge and gross and long lasting.  At the minute I only have two toenails acting up, one where I ended up cutting the entire nail off and the other is a bigtoenail that refuses to be trimed filed or removed.

The treatment for my arthritis (mtx/humira) has mostly cleared up any skin psoriasis but the nails have no interest in behaving themselves. 

How do you deal with the nail issues?

Background:
Ceramics are inorganic nonmetallic materials and are used as bioinert components in joint replacement surgeries. Ceramics are known to be low allergenic. We experienced a ceramic-induced psoriasis.

Objective:
We report a first case of possible ceramic-induced psoriasis caused by a ceramic insert.Methods:A 55-year-old female received an implanted ceramic-on-ceramic total hip replacement for osteoarthritis of the right hip joint. Following surgery, she developed psoriatic lesions, which continued for 10 years. We suspected that psoriasis was caused by a ceramic insert and removed it surgically.

Results:
When the ceramic insert was replaced with a polyethylene-on-metal hip joint, the psoriatic lesions completely disappeared.

Conclusion:
The pathogenesis of psoriasis is still an enigma, although deregulation of nuclear factor κB signaling and resulting abnormal cytokine secretion are speculated to be involved. Ceramics may affect these signaling events and cause the onset of psoriasis.

Research has shown that antibodies designed to block two proteins involved in inflammation, can reduce features of Alzheimer’s in mice. This study uses similar antibodies to ones approved for treatment of psoriasis.

There is increasing evidence that inflammation in the brain can play a role in Alzheimer’s disease. Specialist immune cells in the brain called microglia are thought to be involved in the inflammatory response in the brain that may contribute to the disease.

To study this further, the scientists from Universities in Germany and Switzerland studied mice bred to develop features of Alzheimer’s. The team discovered that the mice had high levels of two messengers called IL-12 and IL-23 in the brain. Both are made up of protein building blocks, and a protein called p40 is a common component of both. The researchers stopped the p40 protein from being produced in the mice and observed a marked decrease in brain levels of the hallmark Alzheimer’s protein amyloid.

The team then used antibodies designed to stick to p40 and stop it from working. The antibodies were given to the mice for 60 days and the team saw both a reduction in amyloid levels and an improvement in the cognitive problems normally seen in these mice.

When the researchers looked for p40 in cerebrospinal fluid of people, they found higher p40 levels in people with Alzheimer’s compared to those without the disease.

Dr Simon Ridley, Head of Research at Alzheimer’s Research UK, said:
“There is increasing evidence that inflammation is a key player in Alzheimer’s and it is an exciting area for researchers working to defeat this devastating disease. This promising research adds further support for the role of the immune system in Alzheimer’s, linking two inflammatory proteins to the disease in mice. Early studies like these are crucial to help highlight new targets for drug development, but we need to be careful not to assume that what is true for mice is true for men. Before any new Alzheimer’s drug can reach patients, first it must be rigorously tested in clinical trials.

Source: NO LINKS ALLOWED

My Turmeric Cure Story

This is the story of how the natural herb Turmeric is helping me to cure psoriasis. It has been proven time and time again that Turmeric can solve many problems in the field of health, from skin conditions, to joint pain and even cancer in many circumstances.

My story is a little different to most stories but you might find it interesting. It started 8 years ago, one day I noticed a patch of slightly dry skin on my knee, but as it was not really bothering me or very painful I really just ignored it. Since sometimes you can end up taking medicine and making things worse. A few weeks later I was walking outside and accidentally stepped on a nail; typically the nail was pointing up and pierced my foot. I was immediately told to go and have a tetanus shot as always as it is better to be safe than sorry. The medical centre advised me that a tetanus and polio combination shot was now the normal thing to have so I didn’t give it a second thought; I decided to have that shot. After all I didn’t want some nasty infection from that nail.

But a little while later I noticed that the shot was giving me side effects, and then I suffered a full blown psoriasis attack, I'm not sure at this stage if it was down to the immunization shot or not but it seems like an odd coincidence. My joints flared up with pain, terrible stiffness and sharp aching around the knees. My skin started to scale and thicken in places where the psoriasis started to flare up.

The worst part was my leg, my leg developed a cyst inside which had swollen and burst, leaking oil into my leg. The leg actually swollen up to the size of an elephant’s leg, it was massive and the doctor decides I should have a steroid shot to bring it down. I then spent the next few months trying various medications and eventually settled for methotrexate.

I have been on this medication now for eight years. But this only sedates the problem it doesn’t Solve it, I still have plaque thickness and terrible redness formed by the psoriasis, I thought maybe I was going to just deal with it and resign myself to having this condition all of my life.

Then one day I found out about a man who had been taking Turmeric as a medicine, more specifically using it to cure his psoriasis skin condition. My first reaction was a little skeptical, but since there was nothing to lose I thought I might as well try it. So in August 2012 I started taking turmeric as a medication. I was amazed, in two weeks some of the patches of skin had vanished completely, and the worst parts of my elbows had been reduced down the last layer, I can see these clearing up completely within months.

The skin on my left leg has also been reduced in redness and will disappear soon fingers crossed. The added bonus of taking turmeric as a medicine, along with curing my terrible psoriasis, is that my once high blood pressure is now down to normal.

A great success story for turmeric as a medication.

Paul-Dee

Disclaimer

Nothing in this article should be construed as medical advice. Always check with your personal physician or licensed health care practitioner before making any significant modification in your diet or lifestyle, to insure that the ingredients or lifestyle changes are appropriate for your personal health condition and consistent with any medication you may be taking.

Hi there. Im new to this forum and am hoping to get some good information on how to handle psoriasis. Ive had it for about 7 years now, It started off around my nose and on my elbow then to other parts of my body, places Id rather not have it if you know what I mean. I dont have it that bad, the other places I have it are on my scalp by my hairline and 2 patches on my legs and a little patch behind my ear, on my eyebrow and little patches on my chin which i cover up with stubble.

What I am wondering is have any people on here had any luck with clearing through diet? I have started the Dr Pagano diet just over 3 weeks ago but havent seen any changes, if anything it has got a tiny bit worse but im wondering if that is down to the cold weather as my place doesnt have that much heating.

I lead a very healthy lifestyle. I dont drink alcohol or smoke. My diet for the past 3 weeks has consisted of a green smoothie every morning which I put in..kale..1 avocado..1 apple..1 banana..pumpkin seeds..sunflower seeds..almonds and manuka honey. Then for lunch I have sardines with brown rice and hummous and for tea I have either chicken or lamb with brown rice.. sweet potato and hummous.
Throughout the day I also try and drink 2 litres of water but dont always achieve it.

Anyways, Im struggling today and really craving a fry up lol. My mouth is watering at the thought of it Can anyone give me any hope that this diet thing actually works and for me to keep going?

Thank you for reading.

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Introduction: 
Although sexual behaviour is an integral part of most adults' overall well-being, this aspect of psoriasis patients' quality of life is rarely explored.

Aim: 
The aim of this study is to assess the relationship between psoriasis and sexual behaviour in U.S. women.

Methods: 
We analyzed data from the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES) from 2003 to 2006. Our study focuses on responses to the dermatology and sexual behaviour questionnaires of the NHANES.

Main Outcome Measures: 
This study examines the association between psoriasis and sexual behaviour in U.S. women with regard to sexual orientation, age of first sexual encounter, number of sexual partners, and frequency of unprotected sex.

Results: 
A total of 3,462 women provided responses to their psoriasis status: 2,753 (80%) women were heterosexual and 709 (20%) were nonheterosexual. Among them, 2.7% reported a physician-given diagnosis of psoriasis. On multivariate analyses, psoriasis was not associated with differences in sexual orientation (odds ratio [OR] 0.90, 95% confidence interval [CI] 0.62–2.01). Among nonheterosexual women, multivariate analysis revealed a lower number of lifetime female sexual partners in women with psoriasis (rate ratio [RR] 0.11, 95% CI 0.04–0.33, P = 0.001). Among heterosexual women, no significant differences existed between those with and without psoriasis in age of first sexual encounter (weighted difference −0.54 years, 95% CI −1.27 to 0.19), number of lifetime male sexual partners (RR 1.19, 95% CI 0.69–2.06), or number of lifetime male oral sex partners (RR 0.72, 95% CI 0.40–1.29). Heterosexual women with psoriasis had 1.13 times more unprotected sex (RR 1.13, 95% CI 1.02–1.24, P = 0.03) compared with those without psoriasis.

Conclusion: 
Psoriasis is associated with a significantly reduced number of sexual partners in nonheterosexual women. Psoriasis may differentially impact sexual behaviour based on sexual orientation in women.

Source: NO LINKS ALLOWED

Hi guys, new to forum and this is my first post!

I've had psorarisis since I was about 16 and now I'm 28, so I've been struggling with it for 12 years. Usual story, got to watch what I wear, can't do certain things etc...

Need some advice if anyone can help, I've got an appointment with the doc today after waiting 4 weeks. They keep fobing me off with creams, ointments and so on which are not helping me and haven't been helping for a very long time. Last few appointments I had I asked for a different treatment like uv, my mums has psorarisis aswell and it worked a treat on her but they keep using me as a guinea pig and testing different creams, gels, ointments on me.

How do I tackle this because it seems like they really don't care about what I'm going through.

Any advice would be appreciated. Thanks

Hi, my story is sort of simple, I developed Psoriasis after a bad case of Tonsilitus I had just after the birth of my 3rd child, a daughter who is 13 now, and have had a bit of a battle ever since, been prescribed various courses of creams and phototherapy (uvb and puva). These had various effects (puva worked the best). It hasn't stopped me doing the things i want to do apart from last year when I had 90% body coverage, including inside my ears and under my eyelids, at one point the pain in my knees and hips made me immobile for a few weeks, but thanks to my older two kids we got past that, and now I still have the (what seems to be permanent) patches, I do hope one day I will have no patches and always look on the bright side.

I now have a really supportive girlfriend who sees me and not just my skin also all my friends are very supportive too. I am lucky in that way.
i don't know anyone who has Psoriasis to talk to that knows what it feels like, that's why I joined this forum, to speak to people and make friends with other people with this skin complaint.

I'm not good at writing about stuff like this, so i apologise, but if you want to chat of have any advice or questions, I'd be really happy if you contact me, and if you have facebook you could add me there as well, thanks for reading

Davie

Ok folks,

How do I get photos on here . I have read all the help stuff, been to ikea for more instructions, recruited the help of children. But sadly nothing.

I have clicked on what I believe is the right button but get asked for a URL//

Do I need to find a host site first ?

Can I upload direct into a post ?

I am currently sitting on my potty sulking...


Thadius

My Turmeric Cure Story

This is the story of how the natural herb Turmeric is helping me to cure psoriasis. It has been proven time and time again that Turmeric can solve many problems in the field of health, from skin conditions, to joint pain and even cancer in many circumstances.

My story is a little different to most stories but you might find it interesting. It started 8 years ago, one day I noticed a patch of slightly dry skin on my knee, but as it was not really bothering me or very painful I really just ignored it. Since sometimes you can end up taking medicine and making things worse. A few weeks later I was walking outside and accidentally stepped on a nail; typically the nail was pointing up and pierced my foot. I was immediately told to go and have a tetanus shot as always as it is better to be safe than sorry. The medical centre advised me that a tetanus and polio combination shot was now the normal thing to have so I didn’t give it a second thought; I decided to have that shot. After all I didn’t want some nasty infection from that nail.

But a little while later I noticed that the shot was giving me side effects, and then I suffered a full blown psoriasis attack, I'm not sure at this stage if it was down to the immunization shot or not but it seems like an odd coincidence. My joints flared up with pain, terrible stiffness and sharp aching around the knees. My skin started to scale and thicken in places where the psoriasis started to flare up.

The worst part was my leg, my leg developed a cyst inside which had swollen and burst, leaking oil into my leg. The leg actually swollen up to the size of an elephant’s leg, it was massive and the doctor decides I should have a steroid shot to bring it down. I then spent the next few months trying various medications and eventually settled for methotrexate.

I have been on this medication now for eight years. But this only sedates the problem it doesn’t solve it, I still have plaque thickness and terrible redness formed by the psoriasis, I thought maybe I was going to just deal with it and resign myself to having this condition all of my life.

Then one day I found out about a man who had been taking Turmeric as a medicine, more specifically using it to cure his psoriasis skin condition. My first reaction was a little skeptical, but since there was nothing to lose I thought I might as well try it. So in August 2012 I started taking turmeric as a medication. I was amazed, in two weeks some of the patches of skin had vanished completely, and the worst parts of my elbows had been reduced down the last layer, I can see these clearing up completely within months.

The skin on my left leg has also been reduced in redness and will disappear soon fingers crossed. The added bonus of taking turmeric as a medicine, along with curing my terrible psoriasis, is that my once high blood pressure is now down to normal.

A great success story for turmeric as a medication.

Paul-Dee
Disclaimer
Nothing in this article should be construed as medical advice. Always check with your personal physician or licensed health care practitioner before making any significant modification in your diet or lifestyle, to insure that the ingredients or lifestyle changes are appropriate for your personal health condition and consistent with any medication you may be taking.

Advance abstract ahead of print as supplied by publisher.

Quote:

---

To gain further insight into the genetic architecture of psoriasis, we conducted a meta-analysis of 3 genome-wide association studies (GWAS) and 2 independent data sets genotyped on the Immunochip, including 10,588 cases and 22,806 controls.

We identified 15 new susceptibility loci, increasing to 36 the number associated with psoriasis in European individuals. We also identified, using conditional analyses, five independent signals within previously known loci. The newly identified loci shared with other autoimmune diseases include candidate genes with roles in regulating T-cell function (such as RUNX3, TAGAP and STAT3).

Notably, they included candidate genes whose products are involved in innate host defense, including interferon-mediated antiviral responses (DDX58), macrophage activation (ZC3H12C) and nuclear factor (NF)-κB signaling (CARD14 and CARM1).

These results portend a better understanding of shared and distinctive genetic determinants of immune-mediated inflammatory disorders and emphasize the importance of the skin in innate and acquired host defense.

Objective:
To investigate the relationship of excess and central adiposity with pediatric psoriasis severity.

Design, Setting, and Participants:
Multicenter, cross-sectional study of 409 psoriatic children. Psoriasis was classified as mild (worst Physician's Global Assessment score ≤3 with body surface area ≤10%) or severe (worst Physician's Global Assessment score ≥3 with body surface area >10%). Children were enrolled from 9 countries between June 19, 2009, and December 2, 2011.

Main Outcome Measures:
Excess adiposity (body mass index percentile) and central adiposity (waist circumference percentile and waist to height ratio).

Results:
Excess adiposity (body mass index ≥85th percentile) occurred in 37.9% of psoriatic children (n = 155) vs 20.5% of controls (n = 42) but did not differ significantly by severity. The odds ratio (95% CI) of obesity (body mass index ≥95th percentile) overall in psoriatic children vs controls was 4.29 (1.96-9.39) and was higher with severe (4.92; 2.20-10.99) than with mild (3.60; 1.56-8.30) psoriasis, particularly in the United States (7.60; 2.47-23.34, and 4.72; 1.43-15.56, respectively). Waist circumference above the 90th percentile occurred in 9.3% of the control (n = 19), 14.0% of the mild psoriasis (n = 27), and 21.2% of the of severe psoriasis (n = 43) participants internationally; this incidence was highest in the United States (12.0% [n = 13], 20.8% [16], and 31.1% [32], respectively). Waist to height ratio was significantly higher in psoriatic (0.48) vs control (0.46) children but was unaffected by psoriasis severity. Children with severe psoriasis at its worst, but mild at enrollment, showed no significant difference in excess or central adiposity from children whose psoriasis remained severe.

Conclusions:
Globally, children with psoriasis have excess adiposity and increased central adiposity regardless of psoriasis severity. The increased metabolic risks associated with excess and central adiposity warrant early monitoring and lifestyle modification.

Source: NO LINKS ALLOWED

A member contacted me to suggest a new thread about Skin Camouflage. There are a few threads where people mention they have problems with showing their skin in public, and as a result they are losing confidence. So I’m going to make this a sticky thread and you can add your tips to it.

Here are some I posted on another thread.

If you’re not sure about exposing your skin, use long sleeved shirts with the arms rolled up, you can always pull them down quick. Same applies to trouser legs.

If you have long hair tie it back with a scrunchie, when someone comes nearby let your hair down. For short hair wear a sun hat to cover your scalp and take it off when no one’s around.

Please add your tips to this thread.

Ok here we go....

I have tried to keep this brief and if there are any questions please, please ask.

I have left out the Sponsors name and the code reference to the product.

The product has been given to more than 2500 in other studies of psoriasis, rheumatoid arthritis, inflammatory bowl disease and dry eye.

I am one of 660 patients in 12 countries being asked to take part in the study because I have chronic plaque psoriasis. I am one of 50 patients in the UK. The study is over a period of 56 weeks.

I am currently in phase 3 of a mixed blind treatment, withdrawal and re-treatment study of 2 oral doses in subjects with moderate to severe plague psoriasis.

The product is a blocker of an enzyme called "Janus Kinase"' which acts like a gate into the cells of the immune system ( our body's defence against infection). By blocking the enzyme, the cells of the immune system are expected to produce fewer chemicals believed to cause psoriasis.

The study is looking at the good and bad effects. I attend a Hospital clinic every 4 weeks. I give several blood samples and have a full health scan including an inspection of my skin condition. Periodically I have full ECG etc. Apart from checking my vitals the study monitors blood, urine, my genes (DNA),RNA, proteins and metabolises.

During the study I am not allowed to use any other form of treatment or spend time in sunlight.

I keep a diary of my doses and I have a questionnaire at each clinic which asks about my mental and emotional state, if there are any restrictions on my work, study, sex life and general social being.

I took photos on the first day of my treatment ( I have no problems at anyone seeing them ) which when I work out how to upload etc.

The product is not a cure but it is a suppressor. At this moment in time ( week 44) my skin is 100% clear and yes I look sexy again I feel good about myself but not confident enough to go shopping in a mankini just yet.

I will give out more info as I progress into the extension study.

So for now folks..... There is hope x

Thadius