Managing psoriasis – how to answer questions patients ask?

Psoriasis affects 1.5% of the UK population,¹ so health care professionals will frequently encounter people with psoriasis, who will often ask them questions and seek advice.

There are several types of psoriasis, the most common type is chronic plaque psoriasis, characterised by salmon-pink, well-demarcated, symmetrical plaques with silvery scales on the extensor surfaces (the knees, elbows, sacrum and scalp); 85% of patients with psoriasis have chronic plaque psoriasis, with 50% also having scalp involvement.²

Other types of psoriasis include flexural (inverse), guttate, nail; and generalised pustular, and erythrodermic (severe, extensive and rare forms). Chronic plaque psoriasis usually develops for the first time in young people (type 1), with a second peak in the fifth decade for both males and females (type 2).³