Symptoms, types, treatment of leg psoriasis

Since the exact etiology of the process is unknown, the search for the most effective treatment is relevant. In the treatment of the disease, hormonal drugs are often used, which relieve only external symptoms, while remission lasts several months, and the drugs themselves can cause side effects. Leg psoriasis medicine is prescribed by a dermatologist, while the complex of traditional methods may include psoriasis folk remedies.

There are many ways to treat leg psoriasis. As a rule, the treatment of psoriasis of the legs includes systemic and local therapy, the appointment of physiotherapy, adherence to the regimen and diet.

Classification of psoriasis of the lower limbs

On the legs, psoriasis occurs in only 30% of cases of skin lesions. Dermatologists classify the initial stage of the development of the disease in this part of the body into two groups:

1. Type 1 psoriasis. It affects the legs of children, adolescents, adult men and women due to their genetic predisposition to this disease. In total, at least 60% of all cases had relatives suffering from this disease. Most often, lower extremity psoriasis is passed on to descendants born in the 3rd-4th generation. Hereditary psoriasis therapy is lengthy and requires the systemic administration of special medications to contain the spread of plaques from the surface of the legs to the trunk and other parts of the body.
2. Type 2 psoriasis. This is an already acquired form of the disease, which develops due to the presence of the above risk factors. The age category of patients with leg psoriasis consists of people who have reached 40 years of age and over. Often these dermatological patients abuse alcohol, eat unhealthy food, work in enterprises with harmful working conditions or have experienced a morally difficult stressful situation in their life. In such patients, the initial stage of the disease is always acute and with a vivid clinical picture. A month after the first red spots appear, the knee and hip joints begin to be affected. It all depends on the location of the plates.

Prevention

The fact that the disease is much easier to prevent than to cure is no secret.

This statement is true for psoriasis in full. To prevent the development of psoriasis, the following recommendations should be observed:

• avoid emotional tension and stress. Have a positive attitude towards life, don't worry about nonsense;
• lead a healthy lifestyle, do not abuse alcohol, smoke and, in addition, do not use drugs in any case;
• timely treat foci of infections in the body, strengthen general immunity;
• smear the skin with moisturizers, prevent dehydration and dryness;
• do not neglect such effective means of prevention as people do. Sometimes it is enough to smear areas of skin allergies with appropriate herbal creams to never hear the diagnosis of psoriasis.

Take care of the affected skin

If there are plaques and rashes on the legs, they should be smeared with special preparations with moisturizing ingredients. It is good that the composition also includes anti-inflammatory and immunostimulating substances.

Do not smear affected areas of the skin with aggressive products containing high concentrations of alcohol. The skin must not be dehydrated.

Pay special attention to avoid injury and damage to the skin. It is known for sure that they cause new rashes, which are not easy to cure. It is worth using only soft and non-traumatic bathroom accessories.

Diet

Proper nutrition is of no small importance. Often it is violations in the diet recommended by the doctor that do not allow to cure psoriasis for many years.

Alkaline foods in the diet should be two to three times more acidic. Alkaline foods include non-acidic fruits and vegetables. Alkaline mineral water can help. You should monitor the timely emptying of the intestines, use products that improve peristalsis

Complications

Complications of psoriasis are characterized by the appearance of concomitant diseases. The cardiovascular system suffers the most, which often leads to a heart attack or coronary heart disease. In some cases, the disease can lead to diabetes.

Finger psoriasis treatment requires an integrated approach and, most importantly, time. Therapeutic actions should be aimed primarily at reducing foci of inflammation. Psoriasis on the hands often passes to the nails, which should not be allowed. Otherwise, healing will take much longer.

Medical treatment

Treatment must be complex, so medications must be different. Make sure you use:

1. Creams and ointments.
2. Antihistamines.
3. Medicines for the gastrointestinal tract.
4. Preparations for increasing immunity.

This is a basic treatment that always helps with the mild stages of psoriasis.

Physiotherapy

Physiotherapy is used as one of the stages of psoriasis treatment. These procedures are based on the use of various natural factors, so they help stop the course of the disease. The patient undergoes a course of infrared and ultraviolet irradiation, acupuncture and cryotherapy.

Folk methods

Traditional medicine is full of recipes for getting rid of the symptoms of the disease and achieving long-term remission. First of all, various baths have proved themselves effective:

• with sea salt;
• with herbal decoctions.

Laurel baths are effective. For cooking, pour 20 gr. leaves with 2 cups of water and boil for 10 minutes over low heat. After the broth has cooled, it is necessary to keep the affected hands or feet for at least half an hour.

The skin of the hands or feet affected by psoriasis can be cleaned with juniper tincture, birch tar or celandine juice. It is recommended to lubricate the nails with sea buckthorn oil to strengthen them.

What does psoriasis on the leg look like?

The initial form of the disease does not cause severe discomfort to the patient. It is manifested by a slight itching and redness of the skin. Gradually, the intensity increases, and plaques of a pink or red hue appear on the legs. The size of the papules is between 3 and 5 mm, with further development the spots grow and connect with each other.

Characteristic manifestations are yellowish or white scales, they are easily scraped off, but in this case peeling increases. If you get rid of the peeling, you can see a shiny red film. Its removal causes the release of a drop of blood, which in medicine is called blood dew.

Psoriasis formed on the soles of the feet, accompanied by unbearable itching. Patients cannot resist the desire to comb the affected area. This opens up access to a bacterial infection, which complicates further treatment.

Why psoriasis develops on the legs

Leg psoriasis is a chronic skin disease with a hereditary predisposition. The development of the disease is facilitated by the influence of predisposing factors. Predisposing factors for the development of leg psoriasis:

1. Injuries to the limbs - abrasions, cracks, wounds. In people prone to this pathology, they often become inflamed, accompanied by itching, comb. Against this background, psoriatic rashes appear. These causes most often cause psoriasis in the knee joints in children, adolescents, and athletes.
2. Skin diseases and abrasions of the feet. Especially often the disease develops against the background of fungal infections. It is important to wear tight shoes where the feet sweat and injure themselves.
3. Metabolic disorders, obesity, diabetes mellitus, endocrine diseases, age-related hormonal disorders, pregnancy. Any hormonal imbalance can cause the onset of the disease.
4. Any chronic processes and foci of infection leading to intoxication of the body.
5. High emotional, mental and physical stress.
6. Irregular improper nutrition, intestinal dysbacteriosis.
7. Immune disorders.

Treatment with folk remedies

Most often, the treatment of foot psoriasis is not limited to traditional medicine. It is best to join forces with recipes for effective traditional medicine.

Most often, a recipe for decoctions, ointments, baths, compresses is used to get rid of psoriatic disease.

Decoctions

To prepare a remedy that can relieve acute symptoms of the disease, you will need celandine and oregano, taken in equal proportions, add chopped licorice root to them, which should be 2 times more than each of the previous components, and take three times more strings. All this mixture must be poured with boiling water and kept for a quarter of an hour. Then strain the infusion and take half a glass twice a day. Maximum efficiency can be achieved if psoriasis has just begun to appear.

Ointment

Birch tar is mixed with olive oil, the resulting mixture is applied to the plates as often as possible for maximum effect.

Bathrooms

For these purposes, an infusion of celandine is suitable, it will not only help eliminate rashes, but also normalize the functioning of the body.

Celandine is poured with boiling water, insisted for at least an hour, filtered and added to a warm bath. The procedure for bathing with celandine should not exceed 10 minutes. This method can become daily.

Tablets

The potatoes did well here. To make a wrap, you will need to grate raw potatoes on the smallest grater. Then, the juice is squeezed out of the resulting mass and applied to the affected areas, the leg is wrapped with a film or bag on top, and a warm sock is put on. The potato wrap is stored for several hours, otherwise the effect will not be achieved.

Characteristics of rashes

The clinical picture of foot psoriasis manifests itself according to the course of the disease, or rather its stage.

There are the following stages of psoriasis:

1. Initial. Rashes at the onset of the disease look like acne, with a slightly convex shape. In addition, silver-steel scales begin to form on each papule;
2. Progressive. The rashes appear more and more, and the papules begin to increase in diameter and merge, forming a continuous area of damage. The whole process is accompanied by intense unbearable itching;
3. Acute. The disease, entering the phase of acute development, is accompanied by new rashes, while the old ones stop growing, starting the peeling process;
4. Stationary. New elements of the rash no longer appear and the affected areas of the skin are completely exfoliated. In place of the previous plaques, a pigmentation zone is formed;
5. Regression. At this stage, the disease characterizes the cleansing of the skin of psoriatic signs, the general well-being of the patient improves to a great extent.

Treatment and diagnosis

Diagnosis and treatment of leg psoriasis is carried out by a dermatologist, the method is very simple and consists of a simple skin examination, blood tests (general and biochemical). Modern medicine does not have the means to completely cure psoriasis. In some cases, treatment is used to relieve the condition and remission of symptoms.

It depends on many factors such as:

• sex of the patient;
• age range;
• place of residence (climatic zone);
• activities (work, etc. );
• stage of psoriatic lesions.

Treatment with local drugs

In addition to products that moisturize the skin, a dermatologist can prescribe the use of easy-to-use topical preparations at home:

• agents containing coal tar, help slow the growth of psoriatic plaques and keratinized scales.
• salicylic acid solution allows you to remove and exfoliate the scales with great efficiency;
• Corticosteroids, made in the form of a gel, are applied to the skin and covered with a bandage. This remedy slows the growth of the formation of new psoriatic plaques.

Systemic drugs

If local drugs cannot cope with the manifestation of psoriasis, other groups of drugs are prescribed.

A combination treatment consisting of retinoids and phototherapy is most often used for the treatment of leg psoriasis. As a rule, ultraviolet therapy or point laser therapy is prescribed.

If all of the above methods did not help, then drugs that selectively affect the immune system may be indicated.

Leg psoriasis is a very unpleasant disease, but you need to know that it does not pose a threat to life, although it significantly reduces its quality. Rare cases are characterized by the fact that inflammation does not manifest itself in any way for several years. However, at the first symptoms, you should immediately consult a doctor and not self-medicate - this will help to avoid the progress of the disease and complications.

How does psoriasis on the feet appear?

Rashes with this type of injury focus on the sole and back of the foot. They have the shape of the classic psoriatic plaques - areas of inflamed skin, a few millimeters above the surface of healthy tissues, covered with grayish scales. The development of pathology is accompanied by the formation of calluses, hyperkeratosis (thickening) of the skin develops in these areas. When the disease worsens, deep cracks appear, the epidermis becomes intensely red. Most often, due to the external manifestations of this form of the disease, it is confused with the development of diseases such as eczema, fungal lesions and signs of secondary syphilis. The photos will help to accurately identify foot psoriasis.

Foot psoriasis: causes

The causes of foot psoriasis are not fully known. Absolute certainty exists only in relation to the significance of the hereditary factor in the onset of the pathology. All other reasons act only as possible provoking factors. These include:

• weakening of the body's immune forces;
• transferred viral and bacterial, in particular streptococcal infections;
• stress, depression;
• the presence of excessive sweating of the legs;
• hormonal changes in the body;
• violation of metabolic processes.

Manifestations of psoriasis on the feet: photo

In addition to visible inflammation, redness of the skin, in pathology there are also symptoms such as itching, burning, pain of varying intensity in the affected area. This creates considerable discomfort for a person, as the movements when walking are difficult.

Due to the roughness of the epidermis on the feet, the plates do not always flake off, although such a mark may also be present. It depends on the hydrophilicity of the patient's tissues.

Foot psoriasis: treatment

Before prescribing treatment for foot psoriasis, the doctor must conduct an external examination of the pathological area to visually differentiate the disease. Today there are no special methods of additional examination in medicine, since the disease is of non-infectious origin and has not been fully studied.

Foot psoriasis treatment is carried out in a complex way, that is, the pharmacological approach is combined with a course of physiotherapeutic procedures, which can significantly alleviate the patient's condition. The use of specific drugs - cytostatics - occurs already with a significant progression of the disease. In the early stages of the development of the disease, drugs are used in the form of topical gels or ointments (sulfuric, salicylic), corticosteroids are prescribed. This is done in order to reduce the negative effect of drug preparations on the patient's body. In addition, a course of vitamin therapy, immunomodulatory and antihistamines is prescribed. Foot psoriasis photos are widely available on the Internet.

Signs of illness

The initial stage of psoriasis on the legs in most cases is taken by doctors for the manifestation of an allergic reaction to some external irritant. Especially if the patient seeks medical help in the summer, when there is an abundance of various allergens in the environment.

The signs of psoriasis on the legs in the initial stage are as follows:

1. The first small pink rash or red patches appear where the skin rubs most often against the inner surface of clothing. This can be the area of the knees, groin or ankle.
2. Skin neoplasms always in the early stages have the correct shape with clearly traceable contours. After 3-5 days, they increase in size and form a single reddish-pink plaque of an oval or rounded shape.
3. The spots are gradually covered with a white coating, which forms keratinized skin cells. These are multiple scales that separate easily when touching the damaged surface of the skin.
4. At all stages of the initial stage of the disease, a person experiences severe itching of the skin of the legs. When trying to scratch an itchy area of the body, severe pain is felt.
5. Taking antihistamines only temporarily relieves the itchy sensation, but is unable to stop the further spread of the rash and red spots. This is a key factor indicating that the dermatological problem is not associated with the manifestation of an allergic skin reaction to external stimuli.

The initial stage of psoriasis on the legs

The first signs of scaly lichen on the legs are associated with increased sensitivity to pain and itching.

Depending on the manifestations, you can see what stage of the disease we are talking about.

The initial stage of this disease manifests itself in the form of a bright red or pink rash.

Initially, the rashes are small and occupy a minimum of the skin.

Over time, the rash of individual parts develops into a large patch that stands out with a red tinge.

Due to this association, psoriatic plaques are formed, which rise slightly above the surface of the skin. The inflamed areas are accompanied by severe itching, which torments patients a lot.

After that, peeling of the affected tissues begins.

Symptoms of the disease

Most often, the knees, thighs, feet and the area near the ankle fall under the influence of scaly lichen on the legs. These areas show symptoms such as:

• severe persistent itching;
• swelling in the affected areas;
• the appearance of psoriatic papules;
• psoriatic arthritis;
• violation of the structure of the nails on the legs.

Peculiar characteristics

On the skin, reddish areas appear, slightly rising above the skin. These rashes immediately become noticeable, because their bright color, characterized by an inflammatory process, stands out against the background of clean areas.

Subsequently, they form a large affected area. The psoriatic plaques that appear after this will begin to peel off, but if they are peeled off, they will bleed a little or simply leave a smooth, red surface.

What is Leg Psoriasis

This skin disease is not considered contagious, but it causes physical and psychological suffering to a person. Psoriasis, which appeared once, after treatment, may not be remembered for a long time. Often the disease comes back suddenly for unknown reasons. With psoriasis, there is a violation in the formation of skin cells, their accelerated development. With the onset of the inflammatory process appearing on the legs, a superficial lesion is observed:

• to stop;
• feet
• fingers;
• flanks;
• areas around the joints;
• nail.

A feature of psoriasis is that its origin is not fully understood, which makes treatment difficult. Inflammation of the skin of the legs is exacerbated by problems with human motor activity. Unfortunately, it is not possible to radically solve the problem of the complete elimination of psoriasis. The patient is helped:

• relieve painful symptoms;
• slow the growth of rashes on the legs;
• relieve the condition;
• restore working capacity;
• return to a fulfilling life.

The onset of psoriasis can be characterized by the formation of a rash - pink papules on the surface of the skin of the legs. As the disease progresses:

• joint swelling;
• development of psoriatic arthritis;
• redness;
• dense scaly plaques;
• cracking of the skin;
• intolerable itching;
• bleeding;
• combining the individual elements into a common lesion.

Manifestations of psoriasis differ depending on the site of violation of the skin of the legs. The following characteristics are characteristic:

• on the hips - large areas with rashes, peeling;
• nails - thicken, exfoliate, change the color and shape of the nail plate;
• leg joints - they become inflamed, their mobility is limited;
• foot psoriasis - the soles of the feet are covered with a thick layer of keratinized cells, cracking, severe redness, increased sensitivity are observed.

Although the disease is common, doctors cannot tell the exact reason why it occurs. There are provoking factors that cause this skin pathology of the legs and other parts of the body. Psoriasis can start due to:

• hereditary predisposition;
• hormonal failure in the body;
• skin lesions;
• excessive hygiene;
• infectious diseases;
• stressful situations.

Medical science believes that the cause of psoriasis lies in the failure of the immune system, disturbances in the functioning of epithelial cells. Unfavorable factors can provoke a skin disease of the legs, including:

• psycho-emotional stress;
• exposure to chemicals;
• violations of metabolic processes;
• dry and thin skin;
• alcohol intoxication;
• climate change;
• varicose veins in the legs;
• pathologies of lipid metabolism.

To help a sick child in a timely manner, a correct diagnosis is required. In childhood, psoriasis can be confused with other skin diseases of the legs. Timely treatment of a sick child will help save him from serious symptoms and complications. The appearance of psoriasis in a child is a consequence of:

• allergies;
• helminthic invasions;
• lack of vitamins;
• hereditary factors;
• failures of the immune system.

Symptoms of the disease in a child are different:

• foot psoriasis can take the form of continuous redness of the surface, which cannot be touched due to pain;
• with damage to the nails, points similar to needle pricks are observed;
• in the skin folds of the legs there are rashes that flake, itch and do not let you sleep;
• large areas of redness with cracks and bleeding form on the hips.

The patient's condition and symptoms depend on the stage of development of psoriasis. Pathologies occurring on the surface of the legs constantly change over a long period. There are several stages in the development of psoriasis:

• initial - the first rashes appear, redness, swelling - a favorable situation for treatment;
• progressive - new plaques are actively formed, existing, increase in size, everything is accompanied by intense itching, peeling.

In the following stages of psoriasis, changes are observed in the course of the disease:

• acute - the progression of the growth of rashes stops, scales appear;
• stationary - no new papules appear on the legs, the old ones form a layer that gradually peels off, leaves spots;
• regressing: the disease stops, the plaques disappear without a trace, all unpleasant symptoms disappear, the patient is healthy.