Treatment of psoriasis with stem cell therapy and TCM
Psoriasis is a common, chronic, relapsing/remitting, immune-mediated systemic disease characterized by skin lesions including red, scaly patches, papules, and plaques, which usually itch. Psoriasis can occur on any part of the body — eyelids, ears, mouth and lips, skin folds, hands and feet, arms and legs, torso and nails.
Psoriasis is characterized by an abnormally excessive and rapid growth of the epidermal layer of the skin. Abnormal production of skin cells and an overabundance of skin cells result from the sequence of pathological events in psoriasis. Skin cells are replaced every 3–5 days in psoriasis rather than the usual 28–30 days.
The most common form, plaque psoriasis, appears most often as red, scaly patches that itch and bleed. Psoriasis is chronic, painful and disfiguring. It is sometimes associated with other serious health conditions, including diabetes, heart disease and depression.
What causes psoriasis?
Scientists are still trying to learn everything that happens inside the body to cause psoriasis.
People who get psoriasis usually have one or more person in their family who has psoriasis. Not everyone who has a family member with psoriasis will get psoriasis. Scientists have learned that a person’s immune system and genes play important roles. It seems that many genes must interact to cause psoriasis. However, not everyone who inherits the genes for psoriasis will get psoriasis. Then the person must be exposed to a trigger, such as stress, medicines, weather, or bad sunburn.
As we know that psoriasis is not contagious. You cannot get psoriasis from swimming in the same pool or having sex.
Signs and symptoms
There are five main types of psoriasis, Guttate, Inverse (also called flexural psoriasis or intertriginous psoriasis), Pustular, Erythrodermic (also called exfoliative psoriasis). Some people get more than one type. Sometimes a person gets one type of psoriasis, and then the type of psoriasis changes.
What you see and feel depends on the type of psoriasis you have. You may have just a few of the signs and symptoms listed below, or you may have many.
- Plaque psoriasis
Raised, reddish patches on the skin called plaque. Patches may be covered with a silvery-white coating, which dermatologists call scale .Patches can appear anywhere on the skin. Most patches appear on the knees, elbows, lower back, and scalp. Patches can itch. Scratching the itchy patches often causes the patches to thicken. Patches vary in size and can appear as separate patches or join together to cover a large area. Nail problems — pits in the nails, crumbling nail, nail falls off.
- Guttate psoriasis
Small, red spots (usually on the trunk, arms, and legs but can appear on the scalp, face, and ears).
Spots can show up all over the skin. Spots often appear after an illness, especially strep throat. Spots may clear up in a few weeks or months without treatment. Spots may appear where the person had plaque psoriasis.
- Pustular psoriasis
Skin red, swollen, and dotted with pus-filled bumps. Bumps usually appear only on the palms and soles. Patient feels soreness and pain at place where the bumps appear. Pus-filled bumps will dry, and leave behind brown dots and/or scale on the skin.
- Inverse psoriasis(also called flexural psoriasis or intertriginous psoriasis)
Smooth, red patches of skin that look raw. Patches only develop where skin touches skin, such as the armpits, around the groin, genitals, and buttocks. Women can develop a red, raw patch under their breasts. Skin feels very sore where inverse psoriasis appears.
- Erythrodermic psoriasis (also called exfoliative psoriasis)
Skin looks like it is burned. Most of the skin of body turns bright red. Body cannot maintain its normal temperature of 98.6° F. Person gets very hot or very cold. Heart beats too fast, intense itching and intense pain.
A diagnosis of psoriasis is usually based on the appearance of the skin. Skin characteristics typical for psoriasis are scaly, erythematous plaques, papules, or patches of skin that may be painful and itch. No special blood tests or diagnostic procedures are needed to make the diagnosis.
If the clinical diagnosis is uncertain, a skin biopsy or scraping may be performed to rule out other disorders and to confirm the diagnosis.
What is a nature of psoriasis?
Studies show that cells which heal the skin following an injury play an important role in the development of the skin disease psoriasis. In people with psoriasis, the skin peels much faster than normal so that it flakes and becomes inflamed.
The transit amplifying cells which develop from stem cells in the uppermost layer of skin will specialize into skin cells when new skin cells are needed. The transit amplifying cells are involved in the healing of the skin following an injury and in the regular renewing of the skin.
Normally these cells wait until they receive a signal to develop into skin cells. Studies discovered that in people with psoriasis, some of the transit amplifying cells divides without waiting for a signal. As a result of this, too many skin cells develop and the skin is renewed more quickly than normal.
In the case of psoriasis, not only is there a more rapid renewal of the skin, but the number of cell layers on the surface also increases. The skin condition causes red marks that are rich in blood and often inflamed. These red marks are covered with shiny white flakes of skin and sometimes itch. Psoriasis is not infectious.
Treatment of psoriasis with stem cell therapy and TCM
With the development of science and technology, stem cell therapy attracts more and more attention in medicine, which has been used to treat various complicated diseases. It is an alternative for patient with psoriasis and has been approved effective by clinical.
The study of healthy skin donors have demonstrated that proliferative signal from T-cells of patients with psoriasis is not able to stimulate the non-psoriatic keratinocyte stem cells. It means that if psoriatic keratinocyte stem cells from patient’s skin are replaced by new ones, it will cause the non-sensitivity of these cells to proliferative signal. Finally, the psoriatic lesions and inflammation will disappear.
In this way, stem cells act as immune system modulators but NOT suppressors. Moreover, stem cells do not cause any allergic reactions or side effects.
Stem Cell Therapy
As the most basic building blocks of the human body, stem cells are characterized by their ability to differentiate and mature into other types of cells with specialized functions. They are also known for their ability to self-generate, a phenomenon where they divide and produce more stem cells. During early childhood, stem cells may develop into a variety of different cell types. They are also capable of replenishing other cells, acting as the body’s own automatic repair system. This ability makes them an ideal treatment for many diseases; this treatment is called stem cell therapy.
Traditional Chinese Medicine
Traditional Chinese Medicine is a green, safe and effective treatment method, which proposes treatment according to syndrome differentiation. Via acupuncture, traditional Chinese medicine, moxibustion, massage and natural therapy, TCM focuses on recovering the balance of patient’s body, strengthening the body’s ability to eliminate pathogenic factor, by adjusting the balance of Qi and activating blood circulation to dissipate blood stasis and dredge the channels in the lesion area. TCM regulate the inner body environment to enhance the effectiveness of MSC therapy, achieving a better health condition.
Here in ReLife, we combine TCM treatment with stem cell therapy to treat psoriasis. Our methods have been proved to be very effective by previous clinical application.