Finding an effective cure for psoriasis would be much easier for scientists if they could understand the exact causes of psoriasis. The question "why? " Appears not only in the luminaries of science, but also in every patient who is forced to fight this disease. Incentive theories began to emerge hundreds of years ago. We have dozens of assumptions available today, but they are all still awaiting scientific proof. Exploring even the possible causes of psoriasis will help many patients avoid recurrence of the disease, and healthy people may not face it at all.
Hereditary theory
World dermatology has been able to identify one of the causes of psoriasis for sure - it is a genetic predisposition. Today, 60% of all patients with psoriasis have a relative with the same problem. Such findings have led scientists to study in more detail the theory of the hereditary origin of scaly lichens.
On 5 April 2013, the WHO Secretariat prepared a study report in this area. I was able to install the following:
- if one of the parents is ill in the family, the risk of the child's illness is 14%;
- if both parents are affected in the family, this risk increases to 41%;
- if sister or brother are sick - 6%.
In this case, psoriasis can appear even after several generations, "bypassing" the previous ones.
An important task for biochemists was to find out which gene was responsible for such inheritance. A study of the patient's genome identified nine gene loci that may be associated with psoriasis. The exact single gene that is responsible for the heredity of the disease has not been identified.
It is only known that it is not the scaly lichen itself that is inherited, but only the predisposition to it. This means that a person whose relatives have encountered a similar problem will not necessarily suffer from psoriasis. Therefore, it cannot be considered as an exclusively inherited disease. In order for psoriasis to manifest, it will need additional pathogens, which can also be considered its causes.
In addition, the question remains about the remaining 40% of patients - why did they get sick if no one in their family suffered from such a problem? This task forces scientists to further look for the causes of scaly lichens.
Infections and viruses as pathogens
The infectious theory of the disease appeared one of the first, began to be studied about two centuries ago. Scientists of the 19th century were convinced of the guilt of pathological microorganisms and tried diligently to determine which of them were responsible for this disease. This explanation seemed most obvious, as psoriasis in patients can suddenly appear and also suddenly go into remission. Even today, there are supporters of this idea among scientists.
Proponents of the infectious theory believe that pathogens send an impulse to the autonomic compartment and the endocrine system, affecting their functions. Such changes disrupt the body's normal ability to respond to environmental influences, to adapt to it. As a result, if we add another provoking factor, the skin cells die not in 30 days (which is natural for them), but in 4-5 days, due to which a group of keratin cells appears on the hands, head, face or the rest. part of the body. inflammation.
For many years, doctors studied fungi and bacteria, trying to find a link between them and the root cause of the disease. But among the pathological organisms known to medicine, there is no one who can become the "trigger" of this dermatosis. Today, the infectious theory of the appearance of scaly lichen is not considered basic, but it is not completely rejected. There is still some link between psoriasis attacks and infections.
Angina, acute respiratory viral infections, streptococci, tonsillitis and other infections have often been found to accompany the first outbreaks of scaly lichen and provoke a relapse in remission. But most doctors tend to believe that infections only provoke the onset of an existing disease.
The theory of the viral nature of the disease was also one of the first to emerge. However, this assumption has completely collapsed since the time when medicine found that psoriasis did not spread from person to person. However, there are viruses that persist in the body for years, reduce immunity and can cause psoriasis if the skin's immune system is damaged. In practice, there are cases of blood transfusion from a sick to a healthy person, although a healthy body is not infected with scaly lichens.
Theory of impaired metabolism
One of the characteristics that doctors notice during psoriasis is the low temperature in patients. At first, this was considered one of the symptoms of the disease, but over time, doctors have given different meanings to this phenomenon. The fact is that the constant drop in temperature indicates impaired metabolism.
Patients' blood tests have confirmed that patients with psoriasis have too much cholesterol in both adults and children.
Such indicators indicate a violation of lipid metabolism in the body. This in turn leads to rapid keratinization of skin cells, which is why some scientists consider psoriasis to be a cholesterol diathesis. However, it is still not possible to determine whether cholesterol rises before or after the first outbreak.
In addition to cholesterol in the patient's body, the balance of minerals and vitamins is disturbed, such changes lead to serious consequences. It has been found that vitamin C in patients with scaly lichen is in excess, and vitamins B6, B12, A are not enough. We also noticed that they broke content:
- zinc;
- iron;
- honey;
- cobalt.
Displacements in the mineral complex significantly reduce the adaptive and protective functions of the body. That is, scientists believe that metabolic disorders can create an ideal platform for the disease: weaken the immune system, shorten the life expectancy of skin cells and more. In the presence of an irritating factor (trigger), the disease progresses and the first symptoms appear. What factors can affect this, we will consider below. Such dislocations cause not only inflammation of the body, but also psoriasis of the nails.
Such disturbances in the balance of useful components have been laboratory confirmed. Therefore, in the treatment of psoriasis, it is dangerous for the patient to take even vitamins alone. Diet, often starvation and low-calorie diet must be used in complex therapy, as carbohydrate metabolism in patients is also impaired. The positive developments from such activities partly support the theory of impaired metabolism.
But most doctors believe that such changes are a consequence, not a cause of the disease. Such suspicions are based on the fact that metabolic disorders in the beginning would slowly lead to other symptoms and psoriasis manifests itself in most cases immediately on the skin.
Hormonal disorder in pathogenesis
Patient statistics show that women are slightly more likely to suffer from psoriasis than men. Moreover, in the weaker sex with such a problem, foci of psoriasis symptoms are observed mainly during the periods of ovulation and menstruation. Such peculiarities in the "behavior" of the disease have led scientists to think about the hormonal factor in the development of the disease.
In fact, in the case of hormonal disorders, patients often have relapses: during pregnancy, menopause, taking hormonal drugs and others. This hypothesis is supported by the general statistics of the first manifestations of the disease. In women, the initial symptoms appear at the age of 15 years, in men a little later - up to 20-25 years. This is due to the fact that the hormonal balance occurs later in the stronger sex.
But this theory also meets opponents in the face of scientists. The fact that changes in the hormonal background cause outbreaks of dermatosis today does not raise doubts among doctors, but it is considered the main cause of the disease. The hypothesis that hormones can cause psoriasis in a healthy person is rejected, as the first symptoms and relapses of the disease appear against the background of hormonal "calm".
Psychosomatics of the disease
Research by the World Health Organization in the field of psoriasis reveals that 2% of the total population of the planet face this disease. At the same time the share of patients in developed countries and megacities is much higher than in the periphery or underdeveloped countries - an average of 4, 6%. An unusual trend began to be studied in the hope of finding the cause of psoriasis. Research and the conclusion of scientists regarding this phenomenon is that psoriasis can be caused by psychological reasons.
The skin is designed to reflect the general condition of the body, it "tracks" all changes in health, including psychological instability. Some doctors tend to believe that psoriatic plaques are the body's way of declaring a nerve-based problem. Hence the fluctuations in statistics: in megacities, life is faster, associated with a lot of stress, as opposed to more measured life in a small town.
Psychologists who are also involved in treating patients are more susceptible to this theory. It is believed that mental disorders can affect not only the moral but also the organic component, ie the body. So, various changes in the nervous system can cause digestive disorders, skin rashes, breathing problems, changes in heart rate.
These violations include:
- Suppression of desire. For example, "I want to live with another person / work another job / hit my boss / move. "Suppression of such desires leads to the fact that adrenaline is deposited in the body and gradually destroys the organs and their functions.
- Stress, neurosis, depression. Such changes can become the causes of the same metabolic disorders, hormonal disorders, etc.
- Guilt, unfulfilled duty.
- Self-doubt.
- Dissatisfaction with your own body.
- Constant feeling of fear, anger or other strong emotions.
Sedative treatment and psychological training give noticeable positive results in patients, which works in favor of the psychosomatic nature of psoriasis. Even doubts about babies (where do they get psoriasis then? ) Are explained by psychologists. It is known that newborns are able to feel and react to the condition and well-being of the mother. So, in case of problems with the mother, the baby can undergo various changes, up to pathologies.
Child custody is also considered a factor in the development of scaly lichen in children. For example, in the absence of maternal love, the child experiences the same strong emotions as an adult (pain, fear, resentment). The body in turn tries to report faults and papules and plaques appear on the skin.
Excessive parental care can also lead to such consequences, but this case occurs mainly in families with children aged 4 years. The formed person tries to get more freedom, and the parent, on the contrary, tries to bind the child to himself. The resulting conflict affects the sensitive body of the child in the form of an inflammatory rash.
Today, this theory of the causes of psoriasis is considered one of the main, along with immunological. Scaly lichen therapy fascinatingly involves cultivation, elimination of negative thoughts and stress, and a state of rest. For treatment they even prescribe meditation and yoga lessons, trips, hobbies that help the patient no worse than medication. However, the course and development of the disease suggest that the psychological factor is far from the only one.
Hypothesis in case of impaired immunity
Research in the genetic theory of the origin of psoriasis reveals that all patients have impaired cellular immunity. This characteristic is also inherited, but can also occur as a result of gene mutations. Scientists suggest that in congenital or acquired predisposition, damaged skin may be subject to autoimmune aggression. That is, the body perceives the affected skin cells as hostile and attacks them.
This hypothesis is supported by blood tests of patients and examination of plaque scales. It turned out that keratinized cells did contain antigenic complexes, and antibodies to these complexes were found in the blood. In healthy people, this is not observed in the blood or in the dermis.
Such analyzes show that immune disorders play an important role in the formation of the first foci of psoriasis. In complex medical treatment, taking into account this fact, antihistamines are used to reduce the aggression of the immune system to their own cells. However, there are still a number of factors that influence the course of the disease and its recurrence, although not related to immunology, therefore of all the theories considered, none is unanimously accepted.
Causes of recurrence that can be prevented
The search for the root cause of the disease has led to the emergence of a mass of theories and hypotheses that await their scientific justification. Despite the fact that we could not find any cause, we have a wide list of factors that cause relapse.
The first of these factors is stress, negative changes in the nervous system turn into a trigger at the beginning of the disease and provoke outbreaks of existing psoriasis. Given this fact, doctors advise their patients to avoid stressful situations whenever possible.
Patients are shown an active lifestyle, sports, travel.
In about 14% of patients, scaly lichen begins at the site of trauma and skin damage, this is possible if a person already has a predisposition to psoriasis. Scratches, scratched bites or rashes can be the site of papules and plaques. Patients should closely monitor the condition and cleanliness of the dermis, treat the wound site with hydrogen peroxide, and apply dressings or a patch.
Regular moisturizers for body and scalp care are also recommended, as dry skin is more likely to recur. It is necessary to abandon scrubs and peels, hard towels so as not to hurt the skin again. You need to moisturize your body with hypoallergenic creams, baby ointments or oils. At the first sign of a rash, you should not rely on reviews and photos on the Internet to be able to "establish" the diagnosis yourself. This will only take valuable time, it is better to consult a specialist.
Medication (both tablets and ointments) should be monitored by a physician, especially with respect to antibiotics and immunomodulators. Even extra vitamins can provoke the development of the disease, especially vitamins C, A, B. If you are infected with infections or fungi, you should definitely consult a doctor and not self-medicate. It is important not to bring viral diseases to chronic forms and not to delay a visit to the doctor.
Proper nutrition is essential. Patients are prescribed a diet that will strengthen the body and reduce the risk of recurrence. For each patient it is an individual food system based on the stage of the disease, the level of immunity and the presence of concomitant diseases. It is important not to violate the rules of the prescribed diet, to avoid unhealthy foods, allergenic foods (honey, nuts, chocolate, citrus fruits, red foods, etc. ).
In this way, the patient must maintain a completely healthy lifestyle: train the body, monitor nutrition and strengthen moral health. This includes the mandatory rejection of alcohol, as even small doses provoke an outbreak of the disease. Such principles will serve to prevent not only psoriasis but also many other diseases.