Psoriasis on hands and fingertips - Help

Hi Paulo Sorry to hear you have joined the psoriasis family. Yes your symptoms are typical of PPP. I started with same after having covid 18 months ago. What treatment are you having. My dermatologist said psoriasis would of always been there but immune system would of kept at bay but covid would of disturbed it and set psoriasis off. 😳 Phototherapy help me a lot not completely clear but 90% better. Take care hope you find something that helps

Hi Moggy Does having psoriasis on palms and soles mean I have Pustulosis? My red areas don't have pus spots

Hello Paulo Sorry to hear you have been diagnosed with palmar plantar psoriasis recently. I was also diagnosed with it in 2019 (at the age of 63) for the first time. I’m convinced my immune system was triggered into overdrive when I stopped taking three courses of steroids I was prescribed for a chest infection/respiratory problems (I think I should have been told to gradually reduce the dosage, but that’s another story). The cuts on my soles and palms were excruciating to walk on and to even hold things like cutlery, and I found it extremely disabling for several months. My GP prescribed various creams initially gradually increasing in strength, but all to no avail, and then referred me to a dermatologist. She prescribed stronger creams and a course of phototherapy light treatment, none of which helped at all. Finally I was prescribed an aggressive drug called Acitretin. It worked wonders for me and gave me my life back within weeks! The extra skin cells, which caused the splits, simply started peeling off. I gradually reduced the dosage and stopped taking the drug altogether 10 months later in March 2020, and have had no problems ever since. I didn’t have pustulosis, but did have red blotches all over my body as well as the splits on my hands and feet, which also disappeared with the treatment. Acitretin did have side effects (dry, peeling skin, headaches, thinning hair, and stomach problems initially) and you have to have frequent blood tests to check your cholesterol and liver function, but mine were always ok. Overall, it was well worth it for me, but everyone’s different. It’s not suitable for women of child-bearing age.. I do hope you find something that works for you.

PS The other thing that helped a little, was a recommendation made by my dermatologist to Superglue the splits on my feet together! My husband became expert at it. It definitely helped for a short while, though unfortunately the effect didn’t really last long, because as soon as you stand up and put your weight on them they split open again. Gave some temporary relief though!

Thankyou Alex N It really has been causing me a lot of upset over several months Acitretin sounds interesting but seems to be quite "full on" My feet ache and throb all day sat in the office at work Every morning the pain on my feet is at it's worse, all the cracks and cuts Were your fingertips also affected? I appreciate your advice

Yes, I sympathise. It’s exactly what I had and was completely disabling. The splits on the soles of my feet were the worst, as it severely limited my mobility. I remember crying once just hobbling back from a cafe where I’d met a friend for lunch, to my car in the car park just across the road. I also had splits on my finger tips, and remember at one point I couldn’t even hold a fork it was so painful, and I used to wear white cotton gloves 24/7 ((a bit like Michael Jackson)! Even though I’ve been fine for over two years now, I still moisturise my feet every night and wear white cotton socks in bed as I’m so terrified of it flaring up again. Once the GP and dermatologist had gone through their protocols of starting with the weakest creams/lotions etc, and worked their way through stronger and stronger ones and then the light therapy (which doesn’t really help palms and soles as the skin is so thick), it was a no-brainer for me to go on one of the more aggressive drugs. Although there were some side effects (several of which settled down after a while), it started working within a couple of weeks, though I continued to take Acitretin for several months, gradually reducing the dose. It was a complete life-changer for me, and I wished they hadn’t wasted about 6 months of my life on all the stuff which had no effect, but I guess they can’t just leap to the most aggressive medication without trying the other things first. Are you seeing your GP and/or dermatologist and what have they suggested so far? Keep going back until you get referred and hopefully eventually you’ll get something to help.

Thankyou Alex You're the first person who seems to know what I'm really going through It really is ruining my life now The fissures on my palms just do not heel It is painful and time consuming to eat / shower / everything really :( A true disability! (which 99% of people don't appreciate) Is there any way I can contact you at all? (email / what's ap)

Hi Paulo If you give me your email address, I’m more than happy to respond.- I don’t really want to publish mine on this group. Not sure what else I can suggest apart from what I’ve mentioned, but happy to try and help.

Hi I've just joined the psoriasis Association as I've noticed my psoriasis get worse I started with a bit on my elbows and a little in-between my fingers and tried a boots cream but it did not work it just seemed to spread it all over my hands which as really got me down so yesterday I plucked up the courage to go to my GP and She's started me on some weak creams with an option to increase if nessacery, I hope you don't mind me joining and does anyone know does the itching get any easier as it can really be painful at times.

Alex N paulme1111@hotmail.co.uk Harrilee I had psoriasis on my groin from 2/3 years ago In around March / April / May it appeared on my feet (soles) and then hands (palms) This has affected (currently ruining) my life :( so hard to manage

Hi, folks. I just joined this online group and this forum hits home. One thing I have found to reduce the pain of psoriatic patches on my feet and toes are silicone heal cups and silicone toe covers (I found them on Amazon). They are very, very soft and do protect the feet from seams in both shoes and socks. Now, I don't know if covering psoriatic areas is discouraged or recommended by all dermatologists, so anyone interested should probably consult his/her dermatologist.

Hi All, So sorry to hear about your tough experiences with PPP. We're aware that this is quite a niche topic in the psoriasis community and there isn't a lot of information out there surrounding it. However, as some of you may know, this week is Psoriasis Awareness Week and we actually have a FREE webinar on Thursday 3rd November with St John's DermAcademy, featuring informative talks from experts at the forefront of psoriasis research and practice all about PPP. Here is the link for more information for anyone that is interested: https://www.psoriasis-association.org.uk/psoriasis-awareness-week#webinar Best wishes, Georgia, Psoriasis Association