Thursday 25 October 2012

An ailment without a cure

Psoriasis is a chronic disease that affects the skin. While there are various methods of treatment, a definitive cure for the disease itself has yet to be discovered. Doctors and scientists still do not know what is the cause, although some research point to genetic links.

My wife suffers from this ailment. It occurred soon after we got married. We first went to a private skin specialist who suggested ultraviolet therapy, in addition to topical treatment. We tried it initially but the cost was getting way too expensive for us to afford. We went to other skin doctors and on the advice of well-meaning relatives, we even tried traditional medicine.

A few years ago, a GP suggested to my wife to seek treatment at Hospital Sultanah Aminah because they have a good dermatology unit headed by a very experienced specialist. The GP duly wrote a letter of recommendation and thus began my other half's regular visits to Johor Bahru's oldest government hospital. Since then, she has never sought treatment for her skin condition anywhere else. The level of dedication and service of HSA's skin clinic is excellent.

Last Sunday, the newly formed Psoriasis Association of Johor held an event day at a local hotel. The activities included a chance for the members and their family to show off their skills in colouring using paints and crayons. There was also a talk given by the Senior Consultant Dermatologist at HSA, Dr. Choon Siew Eng. My wife's treatment regime is now under the direct supervision of Dr. Choon.

The association hopes to gather all psoriasis patients in Johor with the objective of providing support and the sharing of knowledge. Hopefully this can help psoriasis sufferers and their family to cope with the challenges that such a disease brings.

The missus and her cousin Kak Atik, writing down their hopes for a cure
A collage of the painted posters
Smaller posters coloured with crayons
In my opinion, this crayon poster was the best
Dr Choon giving her presentation
Group photo of the team that won the colouring contest

16 comments:

mamasita said...

Selamat Hari Haji to you and your missus and all your loved ones.
I doa your wife dapat sembuh banyak2.
Dulu ada cousin punya anak kena same ailment..rasa dia bawak ke Dead Sea..Red sea..Sea yang banyak air garam tu and orang go to berubat for skin problems..nantilah I tanya..

Kirim salam kat Mrs Oldstock yea.
Dulu a few times I wanted to leave comments on your posting but I always didn't type out the number yang say prove you're no robot..now baru tahu why! :))

Fadhil said...

Selamat Hari Raya Haji to you too, mamasita.

Dead Sea salts are said to work wonders on skin ailments. My son brought back some of the salt for use by the mother but it didn't work out, so we are sticking to the doctor's prescription for now. But thanks for your concern.

I'm sorry about the trouble using word verification but spam comments come in by the dozens otherwise. I hope Blogger can find a better way to control these spammers.

Amelia said...

Hi Oldstock, Selamat hari Raya Haji to you and family.

Sorry to hear about your Mrs psoriasis problem. Skin problem are actually very tricky and hard to cure, long treatment and some problem can only prevent it from getting worse but no cure.

Beside seeking treatment, you can ask your Mrs to eat yogurt daily in the morning before breakfast. Yogurt does help for skin problem, it can help to improve the condition. Take about 150 mls daily and can mix with cut fruits.

1/ Drink 1 glass plain water in the morning. Half hour later take yogurt and follow by breakfast. (Optional) you actually feel full after taking yogurt.

2/ Eat fruits like kiwi, grapes, papaya, guava, passion fruit half hour before meals or 2 hours after meals. They are loads with vitamin C.

3/ If you can take seaweed much better, seaweed is very good for skin condition.

4/ We Chinese boil black bean soup with chicken bones for detox and cleanse the blood.

5/ If can, drink 1 or 2 glass of green tea which is also very good for our immune system.

Have a nice weekend. Hope my info can help your Mrs condition.

Fadhil said...

Hi Amelia,

Thanks for the tips. The missus is now taking vitamin supplements but I'll suggest to her some of the other tips you have mentioned. You have a great weekend too.

DrSam said...

Salam Aidul Adha to you and your family. Semoga diberi kesabaran dan ketabahan dalam mencari penyelesaian kepada ujian tersebut.

koolmokcikZ said...

Selamat Hari Raya AidilAdha Oldstock.

Saya doakan semoga your missus cepat sembuh.

HLiza said...

I did come across psoriasis few times on posters when I bring Iqa to dermatologist for her balding problem (SLE complications) and sometimes even wonder if Najid has this (as he has quite bad eczema episodes). I think there's no easy answer to this condition; she needs your support and her strength too plays the role. Send my salam to her; she's lucky to have understanding loved ones and please never give up looking for ikhtiar ya. All of us come with various unfavourable physical and emotional condition; it's just how we deal with it and look at life positively. Glad to know that there's many support groups also like the one you featured here.

Sir Pök Déng said...

My late Father suffered psoriasis. It infects his joints and knees. The cure for psoriasis is almonds but I do not know whether it was the oil or the almonds in its fresh form itself.

Al-Manar said...

Skin disease is fairly common. I developed one a few years ago and at least three doctors failed to do something permanent. Two months ago an expupil who is now a nurse at a private clinics gave me some cream. Within two weeks my problem was over. L only hope this one is a final cure.

Justiffa said...

Oldstock, kite ni setakat small spots of skin irritation pun dah complaint tak sudah, i can only imagine what ur wife must be going thru all these years.

Salam to the missus, smoga dia melalui hari2 yg membahagiakan despite her condition.

p.s. jeles tgk uol dah bercucu :)

Fadhil said...

Salam Dr Sam,

Sorry for the late response. Been terribly busy at work. Thanks for the kind wishes.

Fadhil said...

Salam koolmokcik,

Terima kasih atas doa itu.

Fadhil said...

Ibu Hliza,

Indeed, there is no easy way to deal with this disease other than having tons of patience and emotional strength. In her presentation, Dr Choon told us that psoriasis patients have a higher likelihood of emotional depression than even heart attack sufferers.

Fadhil said...

Pok Deng,

Sorry about your father. As you mention, severe psoriasis can lead to arthritic complications leading to deformations.

Fadhil said...

Salam Pakcik Al Manar,

Skin ailments can be quite mysterious sometimes. Treatment that does not work on one person may work well on another. I hope you have found your final cure.

Fadhil said...

Justiffa,

My wife's skin condition is not consistent. When it flares up, like what I posted about some time ago, it can be very bad to require hospitalization. But she is such a patient person and seldom mopes about the situation she's in.

Alaa... takyah jeles. Cucu sedara je tu :-)