Archive for April, 2007

We are (finally) implementing our new website. Please forgive the dead links and other oddities until we get it all worked out. Everything should be working properly and look right by May 1 and we hope you like it!

A new study has found “a higher occurrence of diabetes and atherosclerosis in psoriasis patients compared to patients without psoriasis.” But the study did not attempt to take account of the higher rates of smoking and obesity that have been found in psoriasis patients as compared to the general population–differences that could fully explain
READ THE FULL POST

Last week, an advisory committee to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) voted 20-1 to recommend that the FDA not approve a cox-2 inhibitor called Arcoxia (a non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drug, or NSAID, that relieves pain). This Merck drug (also known as etoricoxib), which is already approved in more than 60 other countries, is
READ THE FULL POST

Stay tuned in coming days for exciting changes to our website. The new look and expanded content will help us reach more people with our important message about the seriousness of psoriasis.
Please also forgive some dust–and maybe a few dead links–as we transition over to the new design.

We don’t typically link to blogs, but we have come to know the author of this blog through his emails to us. We are moved by his sense of urgency for his son–who has devastating psoriatic arthritis–even though we disagree with some of the tone and messaging of these writings.
But despite some differences, we
READ THE FULL POST

We found an academic paper from 2003 that suggests that most advances in psoriasis treatment come about by happenstance. Perhaps the psoriasis research budget should be disbursed at random to scientists in all fields. (The article’s timeline stops before biologics.)
Most new treatments for psoriasis for more than 100 years have been discovered through
READ THE FULL POST

In a bizarre twist, psoriasis has found its way into the story surrounding the pet food recall. (First, our hearts go out to all the pet owners who have lost pets or who are filled with anxiety because of this pet food recall.)
An early alleged cause of the animal fatalities was aminopterin, referred to
READ THE FULL POST

Abbott has filed an application with the FDA seeking approval to market Humira for psoriasis. Humira is already approved for psoriatic arthritis. In clinical trials, Humira showed strong results for psoriasis patients.

The L.A. Times just published an extensive article on itch, and they accurately convey how devastating it can be:
For most people, itching is only a mild annoyance, relieved by a quick scratch or maybe some skin cream. For others, the itch stays, stays — and stays.
“It starts like any other itch, like you’ve been bitten
READ THE FULL POST