Winter is the worst time of the year for Psoriasis and this thread is designed to give you some ideas to help through the winter. If anyone has more suggestions please add them to this thread so we can keep them all together. I will make this a Sticky thread for the winter.

Showers & Baths: Don’t be tempted to have the water To Hot! Hot water can start the itch cycle when you get out. Keep baths & showers short and warm. Don’t rub your skin with the towel, Pat it dry to try and avoid friction. Treat yourself and get yourself a good quality Egyptian Cotton Towel. (You will love it)  After your bath / shower use plenty of Moisturiser as soon as you can, it doesn’t matter if you skin isn’t perfectly dry.

Hydrate your skin: Keep your skin hydrated by using lots of moisturiser at least twice a day and especially on parts exposed to the dry cold wind. Drink plenty of water. Get some Omega-3, Try the old trick of a Vase of water in your room.

Sunlight: We all know the benefits of the sunshine and although there is not so much in the winter, if you do spot the big yellow face in the sky pop out and say hello. It may be cold but even 15 minutes on your skin will help. The brave amongst you could go Naked Brrrrrrr

Winter Blues: As we lose daylight hours the winter blues can start to set in. this in turn can create a negative attitude which isn’t good for psoriasis.  I must admit I don’t have an answer for this one but try anything you can to keep yourself happy and positive. (Go on try a stupid grin Smile right now, hold it and count to 100) Did it work? Bet it did for anyone who was watching you.

Clothes: Obviously we all need to wrap up in the winter, and you should definitely protect your skin from the cold dry wind. But try to wear loose fitting cotton in layers. (I can recommend Bamboo Socks)

Hope this information helps please let others know your tips.

I think it only fitting at this point to mention that FRED has put so much work into this site, it is only fitting that we say a MASSIVE thank you for all that he has done.
Not only has he researched all of the info that we can access, but he has been an all round great guy (and comedien) who has helped all of us here, no matter who we are, and given us great advice.
We really do owe him a massive thank you from all over the world for providing us with a wealth of information about drugs, trials, etc., and above all introducing us to each other, to share out experiences about our shared condition.
Hip Hip hooray to Fred, our mentor, and a massive thankk you for what he has done for our Psoriasis community.

After trying all sorts of treatment, without success, I finally managed to convince my Consultant Dermatologist to do something a bit more extreme.
I had all of my bloods and tests done, and he prescribed me Methotrexate.
I was pre-warned about side effects and given lots of literature to read about how it can effect me, but I had already done my own research on the drug myself.
It was quite a lot to take in, but decided it was worth having a go.
I am generally fit and healthy for a 48yr old guy, and I started on this course a week and a half ago.
I have to take 7.5mg of Methotrexate every Wednesday, and every other day I take 5mg of Folic Acid.
I am now half way through my second week of the course, but as yet I have had no signs of any side effects.
I have also found the the scaling of the skin is not as severe as it would normally be, so this is a bonus.
Because I am so early in the course of treatment, I am having to have blood tests done weekly, and I then return to see my Consultant in 2 weeks.
I will keep you posted on my progress with the Methotrexate as the course of treatment progresses.
I have done research on the drug, so if anyone is not sure, just ask and I will endeavour to help.
Good Luck to all,
Regards Micky.

 Hey I didn't post much in the last forum, but I'm back. Since I was gone I've been in school took a health class and did a stand up essay on Psoriasis got an A+ booyah. But even after all the crazy knowledge I absorbed nothing new I didn't already know emerged.

I've been reading psoriasis.org and theres a lot of pretty good info there as well. I got lazy, and busy with school, and forgot to update my psoriasis blog I started a while back, but it has some interesting things on there if anyone feels like checking that out.

Maybe I'll start posting again?? Anyways I have returned to the forum because honestly the best psoriasis information is found on forums I've found.

Before I get started let me just point out, skin cancer is the very last thing I could give two shittake mushrooms and a fudgesicle about. I live in the Pacific Northwest of USA and it rains like crazy and we have probably 40-50 sunny days a year here. I noticed on not only my trip to Panama but also my trip to Honduras, that sunshine, and a crap ton of it is pretty much the only thing I can do to positively effect my psoriasis without any prescription. Everything I've tried behind counters does nothing for me.

Anyway, a gym just opened up literally a block from my house and part of the $20 membership is all the free tanning you could want, which is awesome since the only other time I ever tried tanning was 4 months ago and it was $36/month. Also all of their beds are brand new. Hooray! So basically I've been twice now and my forehead feels less tight which is a good indicator something could be happening but still too early to tell. I will continue once every other day untill visable improvement appears and will post pics if so.

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Hi I'm from Florida and new here. Looking to learn about this disease

Scratch

While I like the idea of "So Called Super Stars" publicising psoriasis. I just don't like it when at the end of the day in my opinion they are only interested in making even more money and getting more publicity from it.

It's comforting to read that a "Celebrity" (I use the word cautiously as today anyone can be a celebrity) has psoriasis and wants to share with the world. you start to follow it and then suddenly you realise you are getting sucked in.

We all know about the Golfer, the Model, and now K.K (No I'm not going to say her name because I don't have a clue who she is) do some research on her and you start of thinking good on ya for helping others, and oh poor you having psoriasis. then you find out she is promoting "Airbrush Legs Spray" by S.H of course there was no fee involved for putting that statement on her blog.

I do wish these "So Called Super Stars" would stop promoting themselves and actually do something for the cause. Roy Castle didn't show his bald head for publicity of his career or to make money he done it to show awareness of Cancer! he was a genuine celebrity with an interest in people.

I'm a celebrity with psoriasis get me out of this thread.

I don't know if there is such a thing as Full Moon Syndrome but it's something I have been wondering about for years. I have mentioned it to others before and often felt it was not taken seriously.

So I'm going to start this thread and see if anything comes of it. you are free to join in and I welcome your feedback negative or positive.

I have noticed over the years that psoriasis and psoriatic arthritis gets worse for me around the Full Moon! yes I have researched and there is no conclusive proof that the Full Moon affects psoriasis or psoriatic arthritis.

The next full moon is 7 days away and I have noticed a bit of a flare up, and this morning my bones were locked up. I must explain that I am do my next injection of Stelara in two weeks and that could be part of it. But I do believe the Full Moon does have an affect on Psoriasis and Psoriatic Arthritis.

I'm going to keep an eye on this and will update as and when I notice something I think is caused by the Full Moon. If you have an opinion please share.

Thanks.

Decision Resources, one of the world’s leading research and advisory firms focusing on pharmaceutical and healthcare issues, finds that competition for early-line use of Amgen/Pfizer’s Enbrel and Abbott’s Humira continues to intensify in the treatment of psoriasis. According to new analysis of U.S. patient-level claims data, while Enbrel remains the most commonly used biologic in the treatment of psoriasis, Humira continues to see sustained quarter-over-quarter uptake among recently treated psoriasis patients, while Enbrel’s patient share has experienced a decline.
“Although Humira was the last tumor necrosis factor-alpha (TNF-alpha) inhibitor to be approved for psoriasis in the United States, it is quickly gaining market share,” said Decision Resources Analyst Iva Holder, Ph.D. “Humira is increasingly prescribed for patients requiring or preferring efficacy greater than that of Enbrel. Thus, its increasing patient share is largely due to patients’ and physicians’ growing preference for Humira.”

Humira has also made inroads in the psoriatic arthritis market, where it has secured an advantage over Janssen Biotech’s Remicade for earlier positioning in the psoriatic arthritis treatment algorithm, despite launching around the same time. Recent analysis finds that at all three lines of therapy, Remicade’s patient share trails that of both Enbrel and Humira.

“Remicade has superior efficacy in treating psoriatic lesions compared with other marketed TNF-alpha inhibitors,” said Decision Resources Analyst Dancella Fernandes, Ph.D., M.B.A. “Yet, its intravenous administration and perceived safety disadvantages have limited its uptake.”

The analysis is part of Decision Resources’ Treatment Algorithms series. Through examination of patient-level claims data, the Treatment Algorithms series provides exceptional insight into physicians’ prescribing trends and the factors that drive therapy choice, from diagnosis through multiple courses of treatment, for a specific disease. The Treatment Algorithms series is updated quarterly.

Source: decisionresources.com

Heart attack patients with psoriasis are 26 per cent more likely to die from cardiovascular disease, or suffer from recurrent heart attacks or strokes, and are 18 per cent more likely to die from all causes than those without the inflammatory skin disease.

Researchers studied nearly 50,000 patients who had experienced their first heart attack between 2002 and 2006, following the 462 patients with psoriasis for an average of 19.5 months and the 48,935 controls for an average of 22 months.

They found that the patients with psoriasis had higher all-cause and specific death rates and say this indicates the need for a more aggressive approach to secondary prevention of cardiovascular disease in this group of patients.

Key finding of the study included:

    The incidence rates per 1000 patient years for all-cause deaths were 16 per cent higher for those with psoriasis (138.3 versus 119.4) and the adjusted hazard ratio was 1.18 (18 per cent higher).
    The incidence rates per 1000 patient years for deaths for a composite of cardiovascular death, recurrent heart attacks or stroke were 24 per cent higher for those with psoriasis (185.6 versus 149.7) and the adjusted hazard ratio was 1.26 (26 per cent higher).
    Baseline measurements showed that patients with psoriasis had a higher rate of hospitalisation for stable and / or unstable angina (severe chest pain). They also showed that a higher percentage of patients with psoriasis were treated with statins and ACE inhibitors / angiotensin 2 receptor blockers.
    Patients with psoriasis who survived their first heart attack were more likely to receive statin therapy than those without psoriasis. However the presence of other health issues, and the differences in clinical management, did not explain the worsened prognosis in patients with psoriasis.

"To our knowledge, this is the first study to assess the prognosis in patients with psoriasis following a heart attack" says Dr Ahlehoff. "Our findings show that people with psoriasis demonstrated a significantly increased risk of recurring adverse cardiovascular events and a trend for increased all-cause deaths after a heart attack.

"Furthermore, the poor prognosis faced by psoriasis patients who have had a heart attack suggests the need for a more aggressive approach to secondary prevention of cardiovascular disease in this group of patients."

Source: sciencedaily.com

Objective:
Vitamin D insufficiency appears to be a pandemic problem and is more common in inhabitants of high latitude compared to low latitude areas. We aimed to determine the prevalence of vitamin D deficiency/insufficiency in patients with psoriatic arthritis (PsA), its seasonal and geographic variation, and the possible association with demographics and disease activity.

Methods:
This study was conducted in a northern geographic area and in a subtropical region from March 2009 to August 2009. Most subjects were assessed in both winter and summer. Demographics, clinical data, skin phototype, and serum 25-hydroxyvitamin D (25[OH]D) levels were determined. Multivariate linear and logistic mixed models were used to assess the relationship with serum 25(OH)D levels.

Results:
In total, 302 PsA patients were enrolled. Two hundred fifty-eight patients were evaluated during the winter, while 214 patients were evaluated during the summer. 25(OH)D levels in winter and summer were adequate (north: 41.3% winter and 41.4% summer, south: 42.1% winter and 35.1% summer), insufficient (north: 55.7% winter and 58.6% summer, south: 50.9% winter and 62.2% summer), and deficient (north: 3% winter and 0% summer, south: 7% winter and 2.7% summer) among patients. There was no association between 25(OH)D levels, geographic and seasonal interaction, race, employment status, and skin phototype or disease activity in both seasons. No association between disease activity in summer and vitamin D levels in winter could be found.

Conclusion:
A high prevalence of vitamin D insufficiency among PsA patients was found. There was no seasonal variation in 25(OH)D levels among PsA patients in the southern and northern sites. No association could be established between disease activity and vitamin D level.

Source: onlinelibrary.wiley.com

Creabilis raised €15 million (about $20 million) in a Series B round of fundraising led by Abbott Biotech Ventures. The funds will be used to support continuing development of the firm’s lead product CT327 to the end of Phase II trials, along with additional pipeline candidates.

CT327 is a topical TrkA kinase inhibitor which is currently undergoing Phase II clinical trials in psoriasis and atopic dermatitis, and proof-of-concept studies in pain. The candidate has been developed using Creabilis’s Low Systemic Exposure (LSE) platform for conjugating small molecules to low molecular weight polyoxyethylene. The firm claims the LSE technology results in products with high local and low systemic exposures, and optimizes drug molecules for topical routes of administration.

Creabilis’s pipeline includes a second, LSE-modified TrkA kinase inhibitor, CT340, which is preclinical development for psoriasis and atopic dermatitis, and also for other indications including inflammatory aritis and pain. The firm says it anticipates filing an IND application in 2012.

A second preclinical-stage candidate, CT637, is a PEGylated variant of HMGB-1 Box-A domain targeting Toll-like receptors (TLRs), which is in development for the treatment of inflammatory and autoimmune diseases.  Creabilis’s research-stage CT750 program is centred on the development of  LSE-modified local anaesthetics for the treatment of pain, which demonstrate low systemic exposure and thus reduced risk of cardiotoxicity.

Source: genengnews.com

Research shows that most who have survived these harsh symptoms of skin itch, dryness, discolorations and even cracking engage in a multitude of treatments. Some good news is that nutrients found in the quail egg contribute greatly to the maintenance and prevention of skin allergies. Specifically, they aid in controlling allergic skin symptoms; healing skin damage from eczema and psoriasis; and minimizing the possibility of future allergic skin flair-ups.

Among the most prescribed methods for healing skin damaged from excessive dryness, peeling and cracking is to continually hydrate the skin. As a product well balanced in the essential fatty acids, quail eggs provide a natural remedy for cell moisture. What's more, its Vitamin B2 riboflavin makes it a natural remedy for repairing damaged tissue without having to consume the high cholesterol associated with the more popular meat, fish and chicken egg sources of Vitamin B2.

A key to reducing itchiness and unsightly skin rash from eczema and psoriasis is to minimize inflammation while detoxifying the body from residual acids. The latter requires foods that are high in alkaline-to-acid formation in order to minimize skin flair ups attributed to toxic residual acids stored in our bodies. Quail eggs are not only high in alkaline formation; they are available all year round. Other inflammation reducing remedies for instant itch relief include corticosteroid hormones, immune-suppressants and anti-itch antihistamines.

Perhaps no greater solution exists for avoiding skin flair-ups than to strengthen our immunity systems by rectifying Vitamin and mineral deficiencies. Research has identified enriched sources of Vitamin A as perhaps the most vital nutrient deficiency to replenish. In particular, products rich in Vitamin A retinol have been found to heal damaged epithelial tissue associated with eczema. Quail eggs are not only rich in Vitamin A, they are among the only sources of retinol that does not compromise your cholesterol levels.

Hello, not sure if this is the right place to post, but I had a question about skin care products with Irish Peat in them. I've heard they're meant to be good but as they are expensive I've not been able to try any. Wondered if anyone here has? Or, what moisturisers do people find help? I used cetraban which I didn't get on with, made me itch so now I've settled on Double Base for a while now which seems to not irritate my skin.

Thanks, JustJess x

Hello, just thought I'd share I've been using a shampoo from Boots, it's from a range called Naked. Think it's 97% natural ingredients and after a long search it's one that you can get on the high st. which doesn't seem to have sodium laurel sulphate in it. It hasn't helped clear my scalp but it has helped reduce the itching (been using it about a year now) and I don't need to use quite as much xamiol now so less scaling all over (still chronic round my hair line though). Just wanted to share.

I'd be interested to know what other people use for soap/shampoo and what experiences they've had.

Thanks, JustJess

Want to be different to everyone else and have an Avatar  (Photo in your profile and posts ?)

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Hello everyone, I've just posted a looong post about my situation in the 'Please Help Me' section. When I'm not letting this plague ruin my life, I'm actually a nice person so looking forward to being part of this community and hoping I can learn from how other people do more than exist with this awful disease and hopefully, when I'm in a better place offer support to other people having a hard time with it! Thanks for reading.
JustJess x