What Causes Psoriasis to Worsen?

Physicians do not know what causes some people suffer from psoriasis. They have found, however, that certain factors contribute to a flare-up of the disease. Patients with psoriasis need to educate themselves so that they can stay away from these irritating agents or conditions which cause their symptoms to worsen.

Temperature seems to be an aggravating factor for those with psoriasis. A temperature that is too cold can cause the inflammation of psoriasis to worsen. The drying effect of a heater irritates the skin and makes flaking more troublesome. A sudden drop or intense rise in temperature also seems to make the condition worse. Patients report that a mild, stable climate is the most beneficial to keep from aggravating their psoriasis symptoms.

Infections in the body also have a negative effect on this skin disease. Whether the infection is an upper respiratory tract infection, strep throat, boils, or common thrush, it seems to cause the symptoms of psoriasis to worsen. The good news is that once the infection has been effectively stopped, the inflammation of the psoriasis also tends to decrease.

Stress seems to be a common denominator in most instances of worsening this skin disease.

The initial stress may come from any source, but once this skin disease flares up, the stress is self-perpetuating. Looking in the mirror at a body covered in sores is stressful. Answering the questions of friend and family concerning one’s appearance or condition is stressful. Even the burning and itching of this skin disease results in stress that worsens the disease itself.

Doctors also feel that some medications may play a role in causing this skin disease to get worse.

Some of the prescriptions medicines that are suspected are beta-blockers and corticosteroids. These are excellent drug for their intended purposes, but in some people, they bring a higher risk of reaction, causing psoriasis to worsen. Other suspected drugs are those used to treat malaria and Lithium. If these drugs seem to worsen a patient’s psoriasis, doctors do have other prescriptions that can be given to replace them.

Through paying close attention to factors that precipitate a major breakout of psoriasis, patients and their doctors can eliminate many undesirable elements. Trial and error seems to be the only way to know exactly what causes psoriasis to worsen in individual patients and to personalize their treatment plans accordingly.

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Here are some terms relating to psoriasis that you might want to explore further:

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