One form of non-communicable chronic disease can be psoriasis on the hands. It makes a person a lot of inconvenience. Numerous plaques make it harder for him to do household chores. The patient develops self-doubt, on the background of which isolation and social renunciation develop. With this diagnosis, psoriatic eruptions affect the fingers, palms, nails and other areas of the hands. It is very difficult to deal with the disease on your own. If a person intends to recover, they should seek the help of a qualified professional.
Causes of occurrence
Doctors identify different reasons for the appearance of psoriatic rashes on the hands. In any case, individual treatment is needed. In order to correctly determine the therapy, the doctor must discover the factor that led to the activation of the autoimmune disease. The reason for the development of psoriasis on the hands can be in the following conditions:
- Weakened immune system;
- Psycho-emotional overload;
- Hereditary predisposition;
- Metabolic disorders;
- Poor nutrition
- Bad habits;
- Chronic skin diseases;
- Climate change;
- Intoxication of the organism.
Psoriatic rash on the hands is often caused by long-term use of medications. If left untreated, plaque can spread to joints, shoulders and other parts of the body.
Symptoms
To find out in what form psoriasis manifests on the hands, you should look at photos showing patients with this disease. Images in medical manuals and on thematic pages can be compared to rashes on the body that are not natural. Also, the disease can be recognized by its characteristic signs.
The symptoms of psoriasis on the hands are as follows:
- Redness of the skin of the upper extremities;
- Severe dryness;
- Swelling and thickening of the skin layers;
- Bursting of formed pustules;
- Pain in the affected area;
- Merging individual rashes.
People who have a predisposition to the disease should definitely know what psoriasis looks like. He will then be able to recognize it in time and begin treatment, without waiting for the pathological rash to grow.
Stages of the disease
It is much easier to cure psoriasis in the first stage of spread. To understand how to overcome psoriasis on the hands, you must first find out what stage of development it is.
In total, there are 3 main stages in the development of psoriasis that is localized in the hand area:
- Progressive. Small rashes begin to appear on healthy skin. They have light scales in the middle. Gradually the rash grows, resulting in the formation of plaques;
- Stationary. The rash stops appearing. Their growth also stops. The area affected by psoriasis begins to peel;
- Regressive. The plaques become flat, stop peeling strongly, and gradually dissolve. There will be no trace left on the skin where they were.
The condition of the skin and the presence of certain symptoms in the patient helps to calculate the affiliation of psoriasis to one of the stages.
How to treat psoriasis on the hands
Psoriasis on the hands requires complex therapy. The most important are medications and local plaque treatment. In addition, doctors recommend a course of physiotherapy procedures that positively affect the condition of the skin.
Glucocorticosteroids
In the initial phase of psoriatic disease, which leads to the formation of plaques on the hands, the use of such means is required:
- Salicylic ointment;
- Topical glucocorticosteroids;
- Fluorinated glucocorticosteroids;
Medicines belonging to this group must be handled very carefully. They are quite dangerous to health as they can cause serious complications and side effects. Sometimes, after stopping taking the drug, the disease gets even worse.
As a result of long-term treatment with these means, signs of weakness may appear, which are expressed in the form of excessive hair growth and atrophy. Therefore, their use is allowed only on prescription.
Calcipotriol
Psoriasis on the hands can be treated with medications that contain calcipotriol. The initial stage of the disease is much better amenable to such therapy. Although it is better to apply it in the last stages of development. Unlike previous drugs, products with calcipotriol do not lead to skin atrophy. They also have no cancellation effect.
Calcipotriol preparations should be used once a day. The daily norm of the substance should not exceed 15 g. The first results of treatment according to this scheme become visible in approximately 2 weeks. The course of taking these funds should not last longer than 2 months.
Tar and naphthalene based preparations
Psoriasis, which has affected the area of the hands, fingers and palms, responds well to treatment with preparations containing tar and naphthalene. They are relatively safe for health and have relatively low costs. Therefore, such treatment will be affordable for many patients.
Numerous rules need to be followed during tar and naphthalene treatment. Doctors do not recommend their use in the fight against diseases that have spread to large areas of the skin. If you ignore this advice, you can accelerate the development of the pathological process. In addition, tar medications can lead to complications of chronic diseases.
Psoriasis on the hands can be treated with injections of antihistamines. Also, the introduction of sodium thiosulfate in an amount of up to 10 ml per day will not harm. In this volume, 10% calcium chloride solutions are often prescribed. In addition, your doctor may prescribe tranquilizers.
Gels are commonly used to treat psoriatic eruptions on the hands. A positive result is achieved after applying the cream. Fat therapy is no less effective. All of these medications can contain hormones or consist of natural ingredients. Hormonal ointment for psoriasis on the hands is more often used for advanced disease. In the initial stages, you can manage with safer topical medications.
If necessary, doctors recommend that patients resort to more aggressive means that the disease does not give any chance. These are aromatic retinoids. One of the best among them is an aqueous gel with a concentration of 0. 05% or 0. 1%.
The following are prescribed as auxiliary drugs:
- TNF inhibitors;
- Keratolytic agents;
- Immunomodulators.
If the treatment works, the disease goes into remission. The patient's symptoms cease to bother her until the next worsening. Preventive agents that maintain health in a normal state help to avoid new outbreaks of the pathological process.
Traditional treatment
For the treatment or prevention of psoriasis on the hands, you can use products prepared according to the recipes of traditional medicine. With their help it is impossible to cope with the disease. But they significantly enhance the effect of medications and physiotherapy procedures, which is also an important advantage.
It is worth trying to overcome psoriasis with the help of the following folk remedies:
- Homemade lard. It is prepared from celandine powder (1/2 teaspoon), baby cream (5 g) and chicken egg white. The resulting mixture must be applied to the skin of the hands about 3 times a day until the painful rashes disappear;
- Baths with sea salt. This drug is recommended for patients who develop late-stage psoriasis;
- Natural oils. You need to use this product to moisturize dry skin. Flaxseed, apricot, olive and buckthorn oils are perfect;
- Solid oil. This substance in its pure form must be applied to the affected areas of the hands every night before going to bed.
It is best to combine several home remedies with each other to speed recovery.
Herbal treatment
On the positive side, phytotherapy is evident. It is irreplaceable in psoriasis. In order for herbs to help remove psoriatic deposits on the hands, you need to know exactly in what form and amount to apply them.
To eliminate the signs of psoriasis on the hands, you can use the following herbs:
- Celandine. You will need its juice to treat painful rashes. They should generously smear the plaques, taking care not to get them on healthy skin so as not to cause burns. The duration of such treatment should not exceed 3 months;
- Sunflower. With his help, medical compresses are made. You will need young baskets of the plant to grind. Water is then added to the resulting mass. The finished dressing is applied to the entire affected area. Sunflower will prevent the spread of disease and alleviate inflammation;
- A mixture of chamomile, celandine, mint, lavender and linden. From them a medicinal soup is prepared which is then added to the hand bath.
It is worth trying to prepare various decoctions and infusions of those herbs that can help eliminate painful symptoms. The most important thing is that the person is not allergic to the herbs he uses.
Homeopathy and psoriasis
Many patients practice the treatment of psoriasis that has spread to the hands with homeopathic remedies. They are selected depending on the constitutional structure of the person. This therapy helps to reconfigure the body and restore the disturbed balance in it.
It is common for homeopathic remedies to be combined with drugs that are of the organotropic type. They reflect in a special way on the activity of internal organs and systems.
If you have questions about choosing the right medicine, you should consult an experienced homeopath.
Prevention
Psoriasis on the hands can occasionally subside and worsen. It is in the best interest of the patient for the disease to remain in remission for a long time in order to avoid the subsequent appearance of plaques on different parts of the body. Preventive measures help to solve this task:
- It is necessary to take care of the cleanliness of the skin of the hands;
- You should adhere to a proper diet and give up bad habits;
- It is necessary to occasionally take vitamin complexes to strengthen the immune system;
- Do not expose your hands to chemicals.
If a person does not break these rules, psoriasis will not bother him for a long time.