DH has psoriasis, the poor guy is in abject misery, MN must have a miracle cure up its sleeve, mustn't it?

[AitchTwoOh]

god, the poor, poor guy... it's all over his face and causing him great pain. any tips?

I get it on my scalp.

As long as i wash my hair daily and avoid hair products that aggravate it I can keep it fairly well in check but obviosly being in my hair there's little in the way of creams I an use. Stress also makes it worse and it seems to get worse in winter (lack of sun?)

Sun helps a lot.

His hands and face only does seem odd. There isn't anything he uses on both is there, like a face wash or soap?

Aitch, it does sound like on odd form - I've had guttate psoriasis most of my life, plus scalp, but have never had it on hands and v rarely on face. I've had UV treatment twice, which was very effective - better in Glasgow than York, in fact - used to go to the Western Infirmary. Once it's in check it's usually easier to keep on top of it, save for flare-ups.

For general moisturising, which doesn't make it go away, but does make it more comfortable, Epaderm is very good. Also, if it's on fingers, you might want to suggest the whole heavy moisturising and gloves overnight thing - might be worth a go.

Ironically for you, Aitch, metho is the drug of choice, iirc, for very severe cases...

Only asking because I - from nowhere- started to react to certain stuff on my hands. All the creams didn't help, but stopping using the stuff did. Whatever it is in some soaps and face washes. With some stuff the skin on my hands gets dryer and dryer until I realise and relegate it to the guest bathroom. At it's worst it is horribly itchy red patches.

Clearasil was the worst for me.

Alberto Balsam shampoo is my worst offender >

oh i Totally see the logic of 'what is he using on face and hands' but i can't identify anything, well funnily enough apart from the dermol (!). (although at this point he just seems sensitised to anything, the poor guy).
he is going to the doc tomorrow (armed with a list of MN's favourite over and under the counter remedies) with a view to them asking for a bump to his consultant app.

ironically his face, while bad, is not a quarter as bad as he has been because unknown to me last night he slathered himself in steroids before retiring to bed. ho hum.

I've heard coal tar is good, and Lush Dream Cream is very soothing.

Steroid cream rocks.

i have had psorarsis since teens and recently it has got really bad due to throat infection, went to Gp to get referral to dermatologist, and in the mean time they presribed me a white soft parrafin cream with cold tar and betnovate, which is quite smelly(in a nice way) and seems to ease it a bit only have been using it for a few days but not as bad as it was. For the face, they gave me a Hydrocortisyl skin cream which you can buy over the counter, it does seem to be working as well , not as bad as it was a couple of weeks ago. The sun seems to work for me as well, but you do have to be careful as sunburn can make it worse. Hope it clears up for your DP, and for everybody else that has posted, psorarsis is a nightmare

ohyoubadkitten
Can you tell me why I need to see an optician please ?
What are the connections between long term use of steroid creams and eyes ?
Thats why I love these boards , someone always knows stuff that I should !

I have psoriasis too! Feel for your dh it can be hell at times. Make sure he sees someone to get treatment. Mine is mainly under control now, I get bad flare ups every now and then but have finally after years found creams that suit me!
I use dithrol, it is a burning cream and can only be left on for five minutes and has to be applied to only the "spots" which can be amusing as some times there are millions of them!! But it really really works for me. I also use a coal tar shampoo (smells rank and is not great for the condition but it really helps relief my head!)

I wish your dh all the best and I really hope he finds something that works.

I have had psoriasis for about twenty years, it started as just a small patch on my elbow then just gradually got larger, then onto my other arm, in my ears, scalp, then started on my legs too and then a patch just by my eye. In the end both arms and both legs were completely covered as well as a large patch on my hip and other scattered smaller patches.
I tried a lot of things from the doc but nothing ever worked. Now however, I have only some slight roughness of the skin but almost no visible psoriasis or redness at all and it is fantastic!
As I said I've had it for twenty years but about a year ago I had a particularly severe flare up and decided enough was enough. I scoured the Internet and realised I had to treat the cause rather than the symptoms.
I had used Oregon grape root cream for a long time and always found it helped a lot and I'd def recommend but didn't get rid completely. That's from the skinshop.co.UK. I used to put essential oils of lavender, geranium and bergamot in this too as they help. Another topical option that is reputed to help is argan oil I still use an eye cream with this in.
The consensus from what ive found out seems to be that psoriasis is down to immune function leading to inflammation so I researched every way of boosting immune function and reducing inflammation.
I started on a holistic lifestyle overhaul. Healthy eating, just basically cutting out most of the rubbish, exercise, drinking lots of water and green tea. Then started on supplements- this list is extensive but my idea was to blast the psoriasis on even level so it would submit!!
(One warning on this is that I have been careful not to duplicate vitamins/minerals as you might overdo it)
Already mentioned green tea for immune boosting, you can get tablets if you don't like the taste.
Apple cider vinegar, I'm a bit weird so I like just drinking this diluted down with a bit of water but again you can get it in tablets too.
Omega 3 high strength
Evening primrose oil
Pycnogenol
Aloe Vera
Garlic
Probiotics
Bromelein
Milk thistle
Conjugated linoleic acid
Good quality multi vitamin (there are some that are particularly aimed at immune function)

I'd say the omega 3 was the absolute number one thing to do, but I have no real idea which was the one that really helped. My idea was to then cut out them one by one and see when it returned and I have dropped off on the garlic, aloe Vera, probiotics multi vit and bromelein but maybe they helped at the beginning and now I only need maintenance levels to keep psoriasis at bay?
I dont know, but something that I did here has made it virtually disappear and I a blinking delighted!
Another thing to try is dead sea salts in the bath (I used them with the lavender bergamot and geranium oil too)
Also, if your skin can stand it, body brushing helps get rid of the dead skin and improves circulation and is said to help detox.
Hope that helps, btw I get most of my bits from health span as they seem to be best value/quality as far as I can tell.

wow, thanks for that, that's great. at the very least i'm sure i can get him to try some omega three and multivit.

My thought was that even if none of these helped the psoriasis then, notwithstanding the psor, at least I would be super healthy and bursting with anti-oxidants. Most of them have lots and lots of other health benefits. I've never had so much energy and been so optimistic.
Tbh I was amazed, and still am that it worked so well- wish I'd tried it years ago.

precisely my thoughts, but it is a chap that we are dealing with...

I've had it since my mid twenties, it's in remission at the moment, but at it's worst I was covered, apart from my face and neck. It makes me sad to see how many have soldiered on with creams etc when there are very effective meds out there. A good cons derm can sort it very quickly usually, starting with PUVA therapy and then gradually working their way through methotrexate, cyclosporin, and then targeted T cell modulators or anti TNF drugs for very stubborn cases. Don't be fobbed off, it can be fixed!

I have recently been diagnosed with palmo plantar (hands and feet) psoriasis, and after reading various stuff on the internet, thought i'd give gluten free a go - I have been gluten free for 3 weeks, and it has definitely made a difference to my skin. I thought, well, i'll try it for a month, and then eat gluten again, and see what happens. I accidentally ate some pasta (i was stressed and dont know how i forgot pasta was made with wheat!) and the next day had intensely itchy feet, and the bumps came back. - So for me that has helped, but I too am going to try the Omega 3 and multi vitamin thing!

OK, here are the things that I have noticed help (I have psoriasis under my nails so very easy to observe/quantify):

1. folic acid tablets (there is some 'evidence' for this)
2. spinach (this is how I manage mine, just eat more of it)

Good luck to your DH Aitch.

Has he tried taking Starflower oil? It's rich in GLA which apparently we don't have enough of in our diets; you can put it on as well. It's totally harmless.

MUCH appreciated, all of this. although funnily enough since he slathered in betnovate (tsk) it's got so much better. i reckon if we can make some dietary changes at this juncture it would be a good idea, while we have a 'clearish' patch.

I've had psoriasis under my hair for the past 15 years and I've only just figured out my winning combination to keep it under control so your DH has my sympathies. As everyone's said its really tricky to work out how to control it and its pretty much trial and error. My combination is high dose vitamin d tablets (simulates sun exposure), steroid cream (betamethasone) and aloe vera gel. The steroid did nothing without the aloe vera which is weird but there you go.
There's a good community here www.psoriasis-help.org.uk/forum/ who are very knowedgeable.

Best of luck to your DH.