WASHINGTON, Feb. 9 (UPI) -- Psoriasis can lower self-confidence to the point of affecting personal relationships, and few Americans understand the disease, a recent survey shows.
About 2 percent of Americans have psoriasis, which rapidly speeds up skin cell growth, leading to redness and severe inflammation of the skin.
In a survey of 502 Americans reporting moderate to severe psoriasis, about three-quarters with severe psoriasis and about half with moderate psoriasis reported low self-confidence serious enough to affect many aspects of life.
About two-thirds said they felt the public feared psoriasis was contagious, while more than half said others are disgusted by the disease.
The research was released Monday in coordination with the launch of Beyond Psoriasis: The Person Behind the Patient, an advocacy program for people with the disease.
