Genital Psoriasis: Causes, Signs, and Symptoms

What is Genital Psoriasis?

It is a type of psoriasis that spreads around the genital area. The person may experience redness, itching, stinging, or bleeding around the genitals. Genital psoriasis is one of the most uncomfortable types of psoriasis that may affect your love life.

According to various studies, patients who hide their genital psoriasis symptoms from their healthcare providers suffer from depression, shame, and sexual distress. The people who choose to stay undiagnosed make the condition worse for themselves. Although it is harder to treat these patients, they should never be embarrassed to discuss it with a healthcare provider. The right treatment can help you get relief from the symptoms and lead to healthier skin. 

What causes genital psoriasis?

It is an autoimmune disease in which your immune system, rather than attacking germs, starts attacking healthy skin cells mistakenly. It attacks the genital region, causing inflammation. The actual reason is still unknown, but some triggers can become the reason for this. Although the triggers aren’t the same for everyone, some general ones are:

• Skin injuries
• Infections
• Stress
• Certain medication
• Cold weather
• Obesity
• Smoking
• Heavy drinking

What are the signs and symptoms?

Most commonly, inverse psoriasis affects the groin and genital area. It is the most painful type among all the other types of psoriasis, causing soreness and itchiness to the skin. It makes the skin dry and develops red or purple patches on it. Psoriasis causes different symptoms in the genital areas:

• Upper thighs: Upper thighs develop red or purple scaly round patches. It irritates people whose thighs rub together while walking or running.  

• Penis: You will observe small red or purple patches on the shaft of the penis. The skin may look scaly, shiny, or smooth. 

• Vulva: Psoriasis in this area appears non-scaly, smooth, and red or purple. The person may experience continuous itching, but scratching the area may increase the infection. It makes the skin dry and thick, causing more itching than before. Genital psoriasis usually stays on the outer layer of the vaginal skin and does not affect the mucous membranes. 

• Pubis: It is the most sensitive area, just above the genitals. Always consult the doctor before applying anything on this skin because of its high sensitivity. 

• Skin fold between the groin and thighs: You will observe non-scaly, red, or white psoriasis on the skin folds between the groin and thighs. You may also observe some cracks and fissures on the skin. It looks like a yeast infection to many people, especially the ones who are overweight and have many skin folds. These symptoms can be observed in both men and women with more skin folds or creases between the groin and thighs. 

• Anus and its nearby areas: You may observe red or purple, non-scaly psoriasis on the anus and the surrounding areas. The symptoms may look like a yeast infection, causing continuous itching in the area. It may also lead to rectal bleeding, pain while passing stools, and dryness. The skin around the anus is very sensitive and difficult to treat. Visit icare4u for more information.