Questions.....

[deville]

Hello all,

First off, let me say, I am so glad that I found this website. I often feel as if people have no idea what it's like to have psoriasis. Now, I don't feel so outnumbered!

I am a 27 y/o male. I've had p. for about 6 years. What started as a few small patches has developed into much larger areas, mostly on my upper arms, back, legs and trunk areas and also my scalp. My dermatologist has tried a variety of topicals but nothing seems to help. I had the best luck with Ultravate ointment but it really didn't clear anything up. It has become too much of a hassle to use now that the p. has spread. It would take me 2 hours to apply it everywhere, plus it's very greasy.

My latest attempt has been with Soriatane. I have been taking it for about 1 month and I can honestly say, it is probably the worst thing I have tried. Since starting it, my p. has gotten worse. I have had spots appear where I never had them before and my skin is so dry it cracks constantly. Has anyone else had these symptoms? I am at a point where I am wondering if I should call my derm. and tell her I need something else or give it another chance? I appreciate your imput!

Thanks again for such a great site!

[RichJ]

hi deville,
sorry i can't help much but welcome to the p family. you have met some of the wonderful people on here and will find alot of great info. welcome and nice to meet you. more will come through and help you

have a good day all

richard

[hkowalczyk]

deville,

Unfortunately the side effect of many of the psoriasis drugs is an increase in psoriasis! don't you just love this disease. But after a while you will start to see improvements. Soriatane is slow acting and it can take up to 6 months to see the full benefits.

One thing with soriatane is tha the side effects are dose dependent, so you can try to lower your dose and see if it still works for you. Also ramping up your dose slowly can decrease side effects by up to 50%. Also, if you combine it with UVB it works very well and you can use lower doses of both.

If you take Vitamin E you may be able to lessen your dry skin. Some studies showed 800IU daily showed benefit.

Do a search on my username, I used Soriatane for about a year and was able to avoid many of the worst side effects. I posted a lot about what I did and how well it worked for me. It is a good drug, but as with any medication, you've got to weigh the side effects with the benefits that you get.

Good luck, and if you have any questions send me a PM.

-Henri

[deville]

Henri,

Thanks for the info. My derm. discussed a lot of the side effects with me but she never said a thing about the p. getting worse before it got better. I guess I was expecting to see results more quickly than they are happening. Well see!!.. Thanks for the info

Deville