Psoriasis in Argentina

[sheawj]

Just when things were sailing smoothly, my twelve-year-old gets diagnosed with psoriasis this morning. He has it on his scalp, with a few spots on his arms, neck, and chest. It could definitely be worse as he only has it in these areas.
Now I am at work, pecking away online with my phone to get more information and educate myself. I am feeling a bit panicky the more I know about it, as a lot of the home remedies mentioned online are geared towards people who live in the U.S. and OTC products found there.
Anyone else out there living with psoriasis who can help?

EDIT: Sorry for the vague as heck post, folks! I guess I was just stunned about the diagnosis and have felt a bit numb and sad all day. But we're going to be proactive and positive about this, so full steam ahead!
What I was asking above was how to deal with the symptoms with OTC items people may use here...for example different shampoos (T Gel by Neutrogena was mentioned by people living in the U.S. and I know the FDA has approved another shampoo whose name escapes me), Vaseline, cod liver gummy vitamins for kids, etc. I remember how hard it was to find freaking marshmallows and pumpkin pie filling last November, so I can't imagine how I would find something like topical glycerin. Argh.

I had been reading information on the National Psoriasis Foundation's page and joined a forum where I could start learning about this disease. It just seemed that there were so many treatments that had to have specific items (for example, just regular petroleum jelly wasn't ok. It had to be Vaseline ?) I just don't know what is available here, yet I know there are steps I can take without these exact items. I am sure they have Argentine counterparts. I am feeling sort of lost.

 

[joelie]

Both of my sisters have psoriasis (two different forms of it!) with one sister having it worse than the other, and she has been living with it for the last 15 years or so. I don't know that there is any cure/remedy for it, it's a matter of managing the symptoms of it (at least, that has been the particular case with my sister who has the worse psoriasis).

I don't have it myself, but do have some insight into it. What is it that you are hoping to know?

My younger sister (who has had psoriasis for 15 years) developed it when she was a teenager and so there were the issues of what it looked like. For her, it was pretty extreme when it first flared up. I don't remember her getting really upset about it (although she would share at times that it did bother her), but she basically just refused to let it get to her, and let other people's perceptions dim her sense of self. I think that might be an issue for your son, but I guess the important thing is help him not let that kind of thing define who he is. It is just a physical health problem and nothing to do with who he is as a person.

A couple of things that help ease things for my sister is sunlight and saltwater. Her summer treatment, as advised by her GP, is to spend time at the beach every day, both sunbathing and swimming! And she will sometimes use a special UV treatment, but that can get expensive. She would also use a coal tar cream as well; but these only relieve the symptoms, they don't make it go away.

I think she tried quite a few different things for some years to find out what worked best as far as relieving the symptoms goes, and she eventually just found out what suited her best (trying different creams etc). She still flakes a lot of skin, but be darned, she has amazing self-control (IMO) as far as not scratching goes (even though the itch can bother her at times). Occasionally I think it will flare up and become very inflamed, but I am not sure what triggers that.

What kind of information/help are you looking for?

 

[Ashley]

I'm sure you've already double-checked this already but I was misdiagnosed with psoriasis (on my scalp) when I as 11 or 12 . It actually turned out to be a severe allergic reaction to Vidal Sasoon's "Wash and Go" shampoo (which was all the rage at the time).
I just thought I'd mention it because there are several brands of shampoo here (sedal, amongst others) that contain formaldehyde which can cause similar reactions and may be worth avoiding if he has psoriasis on his head.

 

[sheawj]

What kind of information/help are you looking for?

Thanks, joelie for sharing your story.
I edited my post above because I realized later that it wasn't too clear.

Turns out that he has guttata psoriasis and not the more severe form. I was told this over the phone because my partner took my son to the doctor, not me. I was going crazy with fear and grief until I heard (and then Googled) the term 'guttata' and learned it wasn't that uncommon in children. I think we can cope with this.

I have ointment and a follow up doctor's appointment for next Friday. Already he says that the itching is better with the medicines. He is feeling pretty low about it now as the main flare up is on his forehead. Poor little guy.

 

[sheawj]

I'm sure you've already double-checked this already but I was misdiagnosed with psoriasis (on my scalp) when I as 11 or 12 . It actually turned out to be a severe allergic reaction to Vidal Sasoon's "Wash and Go" shampoo (which was all the rage at the time).
I just thought I'd mention it because there are several brands of shampoo here (sedal, amongst others) that contain formaldehyde which can cause similar reactions and may be worth avoiding if he has psoriasis on his head.

Oh gosh, how horrible!
Nope, we use good Loreal Professionals because Ryan cuts my hair and would skin me alive for using Sedal. HAHAH!
Actually, now that I think back, this hasn't been the first time he has had these symptoms. He had them in the U.S. as well, but not this severe.

Do they really put formaldehyde in shampoo???

 

[sundae]

I have a family member here that has psiriosis on his hands. It's not too bad, he just uses a special cream he bought which seems to help a lot with the itching. It comes and goes and seems to get worse with stress. It's a lot better now, but it used to be so bad his hands would crack and bleed.

The cream was prescribed to him from Dr. Alberto Neiman and is mixed at Farmacia Central pharmacy. The ingredients as copied straight from the jar are:

17 Valerato de Betametasona 0.08g
Gentamicina 0.08g
Miconazol 1.6g
Vit A Palmitato. 80000 ui
Crema Base hidrosoluble csp 80 gr

I don't know what all the ingredients are and sometimes I'm a little distrustful of medicine and products here, but it seems to really help him. It's probably similar to the ointment you've been given.

These things sometimes come and go. I had pretty bad eczema on my ankle as a child which went away after a few months. And the comment about the water is very true - super cold water plus the dryness from heaters and the cold air outside have done a number to my hands - they were turning deep red. Cream + sleeping with white socks on my hands and these warmer days have helped.

 

[Ashley]

They do indeed!
I think that even some loreal shampoos here contain ammonia! Might be a good idea to swap to baby shampoo and see if that helps. It was the only thing that got rid of my god-awful "wash and go" rash all those years ago.

Oh gosh, how horrible!
Nope, we use good Loreal Professionals because Ryan cuts my hair and would skin me alive for using Sedal. HAHAH!
Actually, now that I think back, this hasn't been the first time he has had these symptoms. He had them in the U.S. as well, but not this severe.

Do they really put formaldehyde in shampoo???

 

[syngirl]

The water here is very hard on skin -- I had eczema as a child but hadn't had any in about 20-25 years until I moved here. Then I had a horrible patch on the palm of my hand that would not go away for ages. Had to get some prescription cream for it.

We had a baby last month and the poor thing has also had a terrible case of dry skin all over his ears / cheeks -- it was a combo of the soap we were using (effing Johnsons) and the water -- we bought some Mustela products and its improving already after a few days.

If you switch to baby shampoo for a bit I'd avoid the Johnsons entirely -- try Mustela or Weleda. Weleda also has a line of skin products.

Dermaglos / Hipoglos are decent over the counter products (you can get prescriptions as well and then get larger jars of them) -- otherwise Mustela does have some other products for kids / adults that are for harsh skin conditions as well. Have a look in the smaller farmacias for them.

 

[Justing]

I have a related skin problem eczema. Once I removed ALL the chemical products from my life it cleared up. It can be difficult since they are in everything now.

Tips
- Coconut oil is anti-inflammatory and moisturizes.
- For a natural fabric softer try vinegar.
- As someone else mentioned about after a shower moisturize. But use a "cream." They work better than lotions. Cetaphil products have worked great if you can find it in BA. Otherwise maybe find someone coming down to bring you some. The CVS brand of it works just as well.
- When drying off "pat down" instead of rubbing the towel over the body.
- Check bedding and all clothing for polyester. It's one of the worst materials for people with skin problems.
- Look for hypoallergenic soaps and laundry detergents. Even things one would think would be gentle (a.k.a Dove) are not. It can take some trial and error to find the right soap and detergent.
- Tea tree oil

I'll add more as I remember them.

Best of luck!