LAHORE: Over 125 million people worldwide, including in Pakistan, suffer from psoriasis (skin disease). Psoriasis is not a contagious disease, it progresses quickly and slowly and can be managed with proper treatment, lifestyle changes and precautions.
Director of Post Graduate Medical Institute Prof. Al-Fareed Zafar said this while addressing a symposium and speaking to the media at an awareness walk held as part of the global psoriasis awareness campaign organized by the Department of Dermatology, Lahore General Hospital on Saturday.
Dr. Sadia Siddiqui, MS Dr. Frayad Hussain, Dr. Tahir Kamal, Dr. Emma Shaheen, Dr. Samreen Rafi, Dr. Faiqa Ali, Dr. Amara Siddique, Dr. Zaheer Saleem, Dr. Ahmed Kazmi, Dr. Farhana Nazir, Dr. Hina Manzoor, Dr. Afshan Ahmed, Dr. Sobia Ali, Dr. Dr. Mahrukh, Dr. Nadia Arshad, Dr. Abdul Aziz along with doctors and nurses were present in large numbers on the occasion. Prof. Al-Fareed Zafar said that the family members should support, encourage and motivate the patient so that he could go through the treatment satisfactorily. Such patients should prefer consultation and treatment from a dermatologist and avoid quacks as they would further aggravate the disease, he added.
The director of PGMI stated that medical experts are conducting research on psoriasis and hopes that in the future they will continue to find a comprehensive and curative treatment for this disease. He said that it is important to create awareness among people about psoriasis so that they can mentally prepare to fight this disease instead of fearing it. He said that if a person has a red spot on the skin or a change in skin color, he should immediately consult a skin expert so that he can get rid of this disease as soon as possible by taking timely treatment.
Prof. Al-Fareed Zafar stressed that state-of-the-art diagnostic testing facilities are available in the Skin Department of Lahore General Hospital to treat psoriasis diseases and that this department performed its duties with zeal, hard work and dedication during the Corona epidemic and that the doctors were available round the clock while treating other diseases. He said that it is very important that people do not hesitate to meet and treat a patient with psoriasis because it is not a multiple disease and it is also not transmitted to another person by shaking hands or caring for the patient.
Dr. Sadia Siddiqui and other medical experts have highlighted the symptoms of psoriasis, precautions and modern treatment methods and said that red itching, white patches on the body, dry and cracked skin, burning, itching or pain, cracked nails, joint pain, stiff joints and itching are the main symptoms. They said that the risk of diseases like depression, diabetes, joint pain and heart diseases increases in patients with psoriasis and that these patients should avoid quacks, get proper treatment and not neglect this disease.
Medical experts said that people who are already physically weakened due to diabetes, heart disease or other age-related diseases are at increased risk of developing diseases early in life.
