Psoriasis is a common chronic inflammatory disease of the skin characterized by epidermal hyperplasia and angiogenesis. Recently, vascular endothelial growth factor receptors (VEGFRs, including VEGFR-1, VEGFR-2 and VEGFR-3) were found to be expressed in normal human epidermis and associated with proliferation and migration of keratinocytes. The purpose of this study is to investigate the expres...

Tonsillar infection with Streptococcus pyogenes may induce several nonsuppurative autoimmune sequelae. The precise pathogenetic mechanisms behind this clinically well-established association are still unresolved. Using TCR analysis, we sought to identify a link between streptococcal tonsillitis and the T cell-mediated autoimmune response in psoriasis. Three patients with streptococcal-induced p...

BACKGROUND Psoriasis is a chronic inflammatory skin disease that often progresses with nail alterations. It is suspected that there is a correlation between nail psoriasis and enthesitis of the distal interphalangeal joint, seeming to serve as a predictor. OBJECTIVES To analyze the profile of patients with nail psoriasis and correlate the presence of nail alterations with psoriatic arthritis,...

Psoriatic arthritis is a heterogeneous chronic autoimmune disorder characterized principally by skin lesions, arthritis, dactylitis and enthesitis. The exact etiology of the disease yet to be discovered, with genetic predisposition alongside environmental factors being well-known theory. In recent years, new discoveries have emphasized role gut microbiome in perpetuating inflammation spondylart...

The purpose of this study was to compare the efficacy of ibuprofen phonophresis versus topical application of ibuprofen in improvement of hand grip strength in psoriatic arthritic patients. Methods: Forty patients who had asymmetrical psoriatic arthritis in hand participated in this study. Their ages ranged from 30 to 50 years. Patients were classified randomly into two groups of equal numbers;...

OBJECTIVE To evaluate an existing tool (the Swedish modification of the Psoriasis Assessment Questionnaire) and to develop a new instrument to screen for psoriatic arthritis in people with psoriasis. DESIGN The starting point was a community-based survey of people with psoriasis using questionnaires developed from the literature. Selected respondents were examined and additional known cases o...

BACKGROUND Specific profile of microRNAs (miRNAs, miR) expressed in psoriasis has been identified in the past few years, while the studies on roles and molecular mechanisms of these miRNAs are still on the way. In our previous study, four specific miRNAs (miR-31, miR-203, hsa-miR-99a and miR-125b) were found to be specifically altered in psoriatic lesions.We therefore conducted a systematic lit...

Porokeratosis is an inherited, clonal disorder of epidermal keratinization classically characterized by development of single or multiple annular lesions with raised, sharply marginated, keratotic ridge and central atrophy. This clinical presentation may vary with different types of porokeratosis but histopathologically unified by the consistent finding of ‘cornoid lamella’. Porokeratosis may d...

Etanercept has demonstrated excellent safety and efficacy in the treatment of patients with psoriatic arthritis (PsA), which is a chronic inflammatory arthritis. Composed of 2 soluble TNF receptor (p75) domains fused to human immunoglobulin, etanercept neutralizes the inflammatory cytokines TNF and lymphotoxin-alpha. In a phase 2, randomized, placebo-controlled trial of 60 patients with PsA, et...

BACKGROUND AND AIMS Paradoxically, psoriasis or psoriasiform skin lesions induced or exacerbated by anti-TNF antibodies have been described. Here, we report a series of 13 novel cases featuring exacerbation or occurrence of psoriatic skin lesions induced by anti-TNF antibodies in patients with Crohn's disease (CD). METHODS We performed a systematic analysis of exacerbation or occurrence of ps...