Glossary for Psoriasis

• Acne: Pimples and blackheads on the face and skin.
• Acroosteolysis: A medical term for the slowly progressive destruction of the distal end of bones in the hands and feet. The condition may be inherited or may be acquired in occupations involving polyvinylcholoride plastic material.
• Acropustulosis: Acropustulosis is a recurrent, self-limited, pruritic, vesiculopustular eruption of the palms and soles
• Alcohol -- Teratogenic Agent: There is strong evidence to indicate that exposure to Alcohol during pregnancy may have a teratogenic effect on the fetus. A teratogen is a substance that can cause birth defects. The likelihood and severity of defects may be affected by the level of exposure and the stage of pregnancy that the exposure occurred at.
• Alopecia: Various types of hair loss or balding
• Anxiety: A feeling of apprehension, and fear without apparent stimulus that is associated sometime with somatic responses
• Arthritis: General name for any type of joint inflammation, but often means age-related osteoarthritis.
• Athlete's foot: Fungal skin condition typically of feet or toes.
• Atopic dermatitis: Skin disorder characterized by chronic inflammation, and pruritis. Often hereditary and associated with allergic rhinitis and asthma.
• Autoimmune diseases: A group of disorders in which the primary cause is the an inflammatory reaction caused by the body's own immune system attacking tissues
• Bowen's disease: Intraepiderman form of squamous cell skin cancer cause by sun damage to skin.
• CRMO, juvenile: A rare chronic inflammatory bone disease that occurs in children. The symptoms go into periods of remission only to return. The most common sites for the inflammation are the shinbone, thighbone and collarbone with usually several sites being affected at once.
• Calcium deficiency: Dietary deficiency of calcium.
• Candidiasis: Fungal infection of moist areas such as mouth or vagina
• Congenital psoriasis: Psoriasis is a genetically determined inflammatory and proliferatve disease, characterized by sharply, well defined plaques covered by silvery scales that appear mainly on the extensor prominence and scalp.
• Contact dermatitis: Skin reaction to an irritant
• Cradle Cap: Common scalp condition in babies
• Cutaneous T-cell lymphoma: A malignancy of the T-cells which make up part of the body's immune system. The cancer is characterized by the excessive proliferation of T-cells which are a type of white blood cell. The degree of skin involvement is variable.
• Dactylitis: Sausage shaped swelling of the fingers and the toes.
• Dandruff: White flaking and dryness of the scalp.
• Dehydration: Loss of fluids in the body
• Del (3) (pter-p25) and dup (4) (pter-p16.1): A rare chromosomal disorder characterized by various anomalies. The listed symptoms are those observed in one reported case. The manifestations linked to most genetic defects are often variable to some degree.
• Depression: Various syndromes with excessive anxiety, phobias, or fear.
• Dermatitis: General name for any type of skin inflammation.
• Diabetes: Failing or reduced ability of the body to handle sugars.
• Discoid eczema: Discoid eczema is a common form of skin inflammation and irritation characterized by its round or oval shape. The size of the lesions may vary from a few millimetres to centimetres across. The cause is unknown but minor injuries such as insect bites may be triggers. The lesions tend to occur most often on the limbs.
• Discoid lupus erythematosus: Form of lupus affecting the skin.
• Eczema: Eczema is a chronic skin condition characterized by skin inflammation and irritation. The severity of extent of the condition is highly variable. It may be caused by allergies, irritants or other factors such as stress.
• Emotional stress: A condition which occurs when a person is under stress affecting their emotions
• Eosinophilia: This is when there is an abnormal increase in the eosinophils in the blood
• Eruptive psoriasis: Guttate psoriasis is a skin condition in which small, red, teardrop-shaped spots appear on the arms, legs, and middle of the body. Guttate means "drop" in Latin.
• Erythema: A condition which is characterized by redness of the skin due to congestion of the capillaries
• Exercise: The use of the human muscles to improve ones health
• Exfoliative dermatitis: Form of dermatitis where skin flakes or falls off.
• Flexural psoriasis: Flexural Psoriasis is a non-infectious auto-immune disease, caused by activation of T-cells within the skin. It is a form of psoriasis found in the armpits, groin, under the breasts and in other flexion creases such as those around the genitals and buttocks. It often results in redness and inflammation, with scaly, dead skin on the surface.
• Fungal infections: Any condition caused by fungus.
• Fungal nail infections: Fungal conditions of the toenail or fingernail
• Generalized pustular psoriasis: This is a rare form of psoriasis is also known as von Zumbusch psoriasis. It can be life-threatening especially in the elderly. It is characterized by the development of pustules in the flexural areas - the backs of the knees, the insides of the elbows, the armpits and the groin. These pustules continue to spread and soon they join to form lakes of pus. The pustules rupture easily and can become infected. This condition can be fatal if the patient gets dehydrated, or the infection spreads to the bloodstream. Generalized pustular psoriasis is often triggered by stopping topical or oral steroids.
• Genital psoriasis: Psoriasis is a chronic skin condition characterized by scaling and inflammation of the skin which can occur on virtually any part of the body. Psoriasis can occur on the mucous membranes of the genitals but it is not as common as occurrence on the skin. Lesions on the genitals are usually accompanied by lesions on other parts of the body.
• Genital warts: Genital warts often from a viral STD.
• Glossitis: Inflammation of the tongue
• Guttate psoriasis: Guttate psoriasis refers to a distinctive, acute clinical presentation of an eruption characterized by small, droplike, 1-10 mm in diameter, salmon-pink papules, usually with a fine scale.
• HIV/AIDS: HIV is a sexually transmitted virus and AIDS is the progressive immune failure that HIV causes.
• Heart failure: Slow failure of the heart (cardiac insufficiency).
• Hypocalcemia: Low levels of calcium in the blood
• Hypothermia: Low body temperature
• Immune disorders: Disorders that affect the immune system
• Infantile pustular psoriasis: Pustular psoriasis is a form of psoriasis characterized by pustules rather the skin bumps. There are various subtypes of the disorder: generalized, annular, palmoplantar or juvenile. Infantile pustular psoriasis tends to occur during infancy. The skin under and around the pustules is red. The blisters tend to occur in repeated waves with frequent spontaneous remissions.
• Infection: Infections as a symptom.
• Intertrigo: Skin inflammation from rubbing together of two skin areas
• Juvenile pustular psoriasis: Pustular psoriasis is an uncommon form of psoriasis.People with pustular psoriasis have clearly defined, raised bumps on the skin that are filled with pus (pustules). The skin under and around these bumps is red. Large portions of your skin may redden.
• Lichen planus: Skin rash
• Lichen simplex chronicus: Lichen simplex chronicus refers to thickened itchy skin that results from persistently rubbing or scratching an area of skin.
• Localized pustular psoriasis: Localized pustular psoriasis presents as two distinct conditions that must be considered separate from generalized psoriasis, and without systemic symptoms, these two distinct varieties being pustulosis palmaris et plantaris and acrodermatitis continua. Localized Pustular Psoriasis either occurs on the tips of the fingers (acropustulosis) or affects only the palms of hands, soles of feet (palmo-plantar pustulosis). It is very painful, and may keep you from any daily activity upon which you need your hands and feet, including walking and eating. Palmo-Plantar Pustulosis occurs in people between 20 and 60 years old, and may be triggered by infection and/or stress.
• Mental retardation, X-linked -- seizures -- psoriasis: A rare syndrome characterized mainly by mental retardation, seizures and a skin disorder.
• Mycosis fungoides: Mycosis fungoides is a rare form of T-cell lymphoma of the skin. The disease is typically slowly progressive and chronic.
• Mycosis fungoides, familial: A rare form of lymphatic cancer (T-cell lymphoma) that primarily affects the skin and tends to occur with higher than normal frequency within a family. The skin is affected first, then the lymph nodes become inflamed and usually cancerous. The cancer can then spread to organs such as the liver, lungs and bone marrow. Survival depends on how early treatment starts. Patients diagnosed in the early stages can survive more than 12 years whereas once the cancer has spread to other organs, death usually occurs within three years.
• Nail infection: Infection of the nails of the fingers or toes.
• Nail pitting: Nail pitting refers to the development of pits in the nails.
• Nail psoriasis: Persons with active psoriasis have psoriatic changes in fingernails and/or toenails. In some instances psoriasis may occur only in the nails and nowhere else on the body. Psoriatic changes in nails range from mild to severe, generally reflecting the extent of psoriatic involvement of the nail plate, nail matrix (tissue from which the nail grows), nail bed (tissue under the nail), and skin at the base of the nail. Damage to the nail bed by the pustular psoriasis can result in loss of the nail.
• Neurodermatitis: Lichen simplex chronicus refers to thickened itchy skin that results from persistently rubbing or scratching an area of skin.
• Nummular dermatitis: A skin disorder characterized by the development of round or oval skin lesions which itch and burn. In the initial stages, small red spots or blisters form and the grow and joint together to form a patch. The lesion eventually looks similar to a ringworm infection with a clear centre and a distinct border. The causes of some cases includes mercury fillings and allergy to rubber, nickel, formaldehyde or neomycin.
• Obstructive Jaundice: Condition where blockage of the flow of bile from the liver causes overspill of bile products into the blood and incomplete bile excretion from the body.
• Onchyomycosis: A fungal infection of the nail. The toenails tend to be affected more than the fingernails.
• Paget's Disease: Breast carcinoma involving nipple and areola.
• Parapsoriasis: A group of skin condition characterized by red scaly skin which resemble psoriasis. The chronic, inflammatory skin lesions are relatively difficult to treat. The skin lesions may develop into cutaneous T-cell lymphoma.
• Paronychia: Skin infection of a nail
• Pityriasis Rosea: Skin inflammation
• Pityriasis lichenoides chronica: A chronic inflammatory skin condition possible caused by abnormal immune system functioning. It involves the development of a skin rash consisting of small skin bumps that change color, flatten and disappear over a matter of weeks.
• Pityriasis rubra pilaris: A chronic inflammatory skin condition
• Plaque psoriasis: Plaque psoriasis is the most common presentation of psoriasis and of all the patterns is the most likely to affect the typical areas of the elbows, knees, umbilicus and lower back.
• Pruritus: The sensation of itch
• Psoriasis: Psoriasis is an inflammatory skin condition where the defective immune system causes skin cells to grow rapidly. It affects a significant number of people. Arthritis, which can be severe, is associated with the psoriasis in up to a third of cases. Not all patients who are susceptible to the condition will develop it - roughly 10% of those susceptible will actually develop the condition. There are various environmental factors which can trigger the onset of the disease e.g. strep throat (common trigger), some medication, stress and cold weather. Once the disease develops, it may resolve on its own or with treatment or may become a persistent chronic condition. The severity and duration of symptoms is variable.
• Psoriasis arthropathica: Psoriatic arthritis is a chronic disease characterized by inflammation of the skin (psoriasis) and joints (arthritis). Psoriatic arthritis is said to be a seronegative spondyloarthropathy and therefore occurs more commonly in patients with tissue type HLA-B27 Syndrome in which psoriasis is associated with arthritis, often involving inflammation in terminal interphalangeal joints. A rheumatoid factor is not usually present in the sera of affected individuals.
• Psoriatic Arthritis: Psoriatic arthritis is a chronic disease characterized by inflammation of the skin (psoriasis) and joints (arthritis). Psoriatic arthritis is said to be a seronegative spondyloarthropathy and therefore occurs more commonly in patients with tissue type HLA-B27.
• Psoriatic arthritis, juvenile form: A type of arthritis associated with psoriasis in children. Psoriasis and arthritis are both inflammatory conditions with one affecting the skin and the other affecting the joints. The arthritis tends to precede the psoriasis.
• Redness: Reddening of the skin.
• Rheumatic conditions: Any condition that affects ones joints
• Rheumatoid arthritis: Autoimmune form of arthritis usually in teens or young adults.
• Ridged nails: ridges are elongate crest or a linear series of crests on nails. Ridging in nails may be longitudinal or transverse
• Rodent ulcer: Facial ulcer not actually related to rodents
• Scabies: Mite infection of the skin common in institutions.
• Scalp psoriasis: Scalp psoriasis can be very mild, with slight, fine scaling. It can also be very severe with thick, crusted plaques covering the entire scalp, which commonly can cause hair loss.
• Scaly skin: Toughness or scaliness of the skin
• Singleton-Merten Syndrome: A very rare disorder involving calcium abnormalities which affect the teeth, bones and blood vessels.
• Skin Cancer: Cancer of the skin; the most common type of cancer.
• Skin conditions: Any condition that affects the skin
• Skin infection: A condition which is characterized by an infection which occurs on the skin
• Skin rash: A reaction to the exposure of the skin to an allergen
• Smoking: The smoking of cigarettes
• Social withdrawal: When an individual withdraws from normal social interactions
• Society problems: Difficulty interacting in society.
• Strep throat: Streptococcal bacterial throat infection.
• Streptococcus infection:
• Stress: Emotional stress (sometimes refers to physical stress)
• Sunburn: Any injury to the skin caused by the ultraviolet rays caused by the sun
• Superficial basal cell carcinoma: A common form of skin cancer which appears as irregular scaly plaques and grows slowly over a period of months or years. The cancer originates from the innermost cells (basal cells) of the top skin layer. These cancers generally occur on the parts of the skin that tend to have the most sun exposure e.g. face, shoulders, back, neck and scalp.
• Sweating: Sweating more than normal
• Thrush: Thrush is a fungal infection which is caused by a fungus from the Candida species. It usually affects the mucus membranes of the mouth and vagina. Occasionally the infection can spread throughout the body and cause severe illness.
• Tinea: A general term for various fungal skin afflictions; often incorrectly called ringworm.
• Tinea corporis: A condition which is characterized by tinea of glabrous skin
• Tinea cruris: Red, scaly rash in groin and upper thigh area; usually found in men and due to fungal infection
• Tinea unguium: A condition which is characterized by tinea of the nails
• Tranebjaerg-Svejgaard syndrome: A rare syndrome characterized mainly by mental retardation, seizures and a skin disorder.
• Vulvar cancer: Cancer (malignant) that develops in the tissue of the vulva.
• Vulvar lesions: A condition which is characterized lesions which occur on the vulva

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