In this article we would discover:
- What is Psoriasis
- What are the Current Treatments
- How Stellar™ Treats Psoriasis
- Case Study of a Psoriasis Patient
What exactly is Psoriasis?
Psoriasis is an autoimmune disease whereby patches of red appear on the skin and it’s often covered in a thick layer of shiny, scaly skin. More often than not, the psoriasis plaques or patches are itchy or sore due to the inflammation it experiences. These plaques can occur almost anywhere on the body, but most commonly on the legs, scalp, lower back, face, inside the mouth, soles of the feet and elbows.
In certain severe conditions, psoriasis can cause the inflammation of joints that result in joint pain, not unlike those suffered by arthritis patients. Psoriasis can also show up on your fingernails, toenails and in the inner portions of the genitals. Psoriasis is caused by the same concept as allergies. However, in this case, the body becomes ‘allergic’ to its own cells and starts to fight these cells as if they were an external invading entity.
What are the current treatments for Psoriasis?
In conventional medicine, psoriasis treatment largely consists of alleviating symptoms and clearing the skin up. There are three main types of treatments namely topical treatments, light therapy, and systemic medication.
Topical treatments consist of supplements, creams and medication that slows skin growth and reduces inflammation, relieves itching and prevents skin peeling. Light therapy exposes the skin to sunlight and other types of light to reduce the overgrowth of skin cells. Systemic treatments are usually for severe cases and they sometimes suppress the overactive immune system that’s causing psoriasis.
However, these treatments merely target the symptoms and not the root cause of Psoriasis. In order to treat this skin condition in a more holistic manner, there are several new methods that doctors are looking at to tackle psoriasis.
The Stellar™ Method
At Stellar™, your psoriasis is treated with novel methods whereby the root cause of the disease is examined, rather than just alleviating the symptoms.
For mild psoriasis conditions, a combination of Functional Medicine, Bioidentical Hormone Replacement Therapy and Platelet Rich Plasma will be employed. For cases that are stubborn and more severe, Stem Cell Therapy will be the treatment of choice.
One aspect that Stellar™ targets in the patient’s body is adrenal fatigue caused by an unhealthy endocrine system. As one age, the endocrine system can become irregular and incompetent. One important part of the endocrine system is the thymus glands which are involved in regulating the immune system. Keeping the thymus glands healthy is important in preventing autoimmune diseases like psoriasis
Here is some brief information about each treatment method:
Functional Medicine
Functional medicine is an approach that treats Psoriasis as a symptom of another underlying disease. Functional medicine usually looks at the gut health of a patient and removes the bad, while adding the good. Many psoriasis patients suffer from an imbalance of gut microflora, meaning that there are more bad microorganisms than good ones. The strategy is to combat the overgrowth of dangerous bacteria and promote the growth of probiotics. Patients will also be put on a diet that discourages inflammation, and rich in vitamins to promote skin healing.
Bioidentical Hormone Replacement Therapy (BHRT)
In some cases, skin conditions like Psoriasis may be caused by hormone imbalances. These imbalances may be caused by pregnancy, menopause or menarche. For certain women, the changes in hormones that they experience during this time can cause patches of skin to be inflamed. In order to establish if a patient’s hormones are imbalanced, tests will be conducted so that hormones similar to those in the human body can be prescribed to correct the situation and restore the skin to full health.
BHRT’s main aim is also to reverse Adrenal Fatigue, which is basically an imbalance of signal proteins (also called hormones) caused by an aging or unhealthy endocrine system that controls our immunity. Once the hormones reach the right balance, the immune system will start to function normally again, leading to a decrease in autoimmune attacks.
Platelet Rich Plasma (PRP)
Platelet rich plasma or PRP is a treatment method that has been used for various skin conditions including dandruff and wounds. Platelets are essentially proteins in your blood that gather at a site of inflammation and it attracts a cascade of reactions that lead to a healing process. PRP is prepared by drawing the patient’s own blood and concentrating the platelets within to a higher concentration. These platelets will then be injected back into the affected site to decrease inflammation and stimulate repair and regeneration.
PRP is also used for Thymus regeneration, whereby the thymus gland cells are given a new lease of life and encouraged to grow and heal. Thymus glands are essential in the body’s immune system, and a dysfunctional Thymus gland will lead to problems with the immune system, such as psoriasis.
Stem Cell Therapy
Stem cell therapy is a very new method is treating psoriasis. The basic concept is that stem cells are non differentiated cells that will be able to take the place of the autoimmune skin cells that cause psoriasis. These stem cells will begin afresh and anew, not carrying any of the autoimmune issues of the previous batch. Initial research has shown that stem cell therapy is anecdotally able to combat psoriasis effectively. However, it is often used only when the psoriasis is severe and doesn’t respond to the previously mentioned treatments.
Stem Cells are sometimes used in conjunction with the other methods mentioned above and is targeted at the Endocrine system, especially in the Thymus glands in order to replace cells that have mutated beyond repair. In a simple sense, Stem cells are able to ‘Reset’ abnormal Thymus gland cells with normal, healthy cells, leading to a more wholesome immune system that won’t attack itself.
Free of Psoriasis: A True Success Story
Madam Margaret Chua* has been suffering from debilitating psoriasis for the past 7 years. It will flare up from time to time and cause her quality of life to be affected. At certain times, it would be so severe that she had to be admitted into the hospital.
She was looking hard for a treatment method that would cure her condition for the long term and tried all sorts of strategies and methods. This is how she came upon Stellar Cells, where she underwent a combination of Functional Medicine, BHRT and Stem Cell therapy.
After 6 months, her psoriasis is all but gone, with hardly any trace of her previous condition. The treatment has completely changed Mdm Chua’s health and given her a new lease on life as she no longer has to worry about her skin.
What You Can Take Away
In short, if you do suffer from psoriasis, know that your treatment options are rich and diverse. There are many novel approaches that don’t just treat the condition as a single independent disease but considers it as part of your entire health and well being, meaning that any other underlying conditions get treated as well. Here at Stellar Cells, you’ll find the long term treatment answer you seek for smooth, discomfort free skin.