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Psoriasis is one of the worst skin rashes that one can have. This chronic autoimmune disease will cause the skin to thicken and turn red, leaving flaky, silver to white patches commonly known as skin scales. These signs and symptoms form due to skin cells rapidly accelerating their growth and accumulating within the upper layer of the skin known as the epidermis. Under normal conditions, skin cells grow deep within the skin and typically rise to the surface about once a month. Throughout the time of psoriasis, the immune system sends out faulty signals that speed up the growth cycle of skin cells to about two weeks instead of the healthy duration of four weeks. The dead skin cells show up on the surface with these red and white hues of scaly patches that are itchy and irritable.

The skin illness will vary in severity, covering from minor localized patches to full body coverage. For most cases it is a mild skin illness that does not extend beyond 3% of the body. Having more than 3% to 10% of the body covered is viewed as moderate while anything beyond 10% is considered severe. In general, the ailment becomes severe for those who have a weakened immune system stemming from autoimmune disorders or chemotherapy. In addition, arthritis sufferers amount to up to one third of those who suffer psoriasis. Under this ailment labeled as psoriasis arthritis, one or more joints will become swollen and stiff and cause great pain. Sausage like swelling will emerge on the toes and fingers due to the inflammation stemming from psoriasis arthritis.

It could impact on people of any age, but psoriasis usually strikes between the ages of 15 to 35. The symptoms could appear gradually or rapidly. Oftentimes psoriasis strikes the fingers which in turn make the fingernails thicken. The worst case scenario results in the fingernails falling off. Elsewhere on the body psoriasis' redness happens on the elbows, knees and trunk, genitals, and the palms of both the hands and feet. In addition, the skin condition can attack the scalp where it will trigger severe dandruff. This is a dormant skin condition that can suddenly appear in between long durations of time of not suffering any symptoms. As with skin hives, due to this highly recurrent nature, it is difficult to cure.

At the least psoriasis is not a contagious skin condition. While what exactly is the root cause of psoriasis is still not known, many doctors believe that there is a hereditary factor involved. Additional factors that could play a part in aggravating the condition are bacteria, viral and upper respiratory infections, injury to the skin including cuts, burns, and insect bites, and some medicines that include antimalarial drugs, beta-blockers, and lithium.

Effective treatment entails preventing further infections while managing the symptoms that are currently in place. In general, topical agents such as creams and lotions are useful for mild cases, whereas phototherapy is considered more for moderate levels and systemic agents such as pills or injections are for the severe levels.