You trumped me there Dave
So I'll give a slightly different version
History Of PsoriasisOriginally considered a curse from the gods, cases of Psoriasis have been documented since the days of Greek mythology, almost 2,600 years ago.
However, it took centuries before it was actually identified by Aurelieus Celsus, a Roman scholar who referred to Psoriasis as "impeto", the Latin word for "attack". The Bible makes reference to Psoriasis but mistakenly calls it leprosy.
For hundreds of years, people who suffered from Psoriasis were ostracized, often forced to ring warning bells alerting others in their paths and to wander as homeless beggars. Their very appearance was considered unclean, some even suffered the same fate as lepers, including being burnt at the stake in the 14th century.
During the Middle Ages, it was thought that all scaling conditions were leprosy. In fact, it wasn't until the 1700's that Psoriasis was differentiated from other skin diseases. Psoriasis was recognized as a specific and separate clinical entity in 1808 by Robert Willan who at first called it "lepra" derived from the Greek words "loops" (the epidermis) and "lepo"(the scale).
Finally in 1840, he renamed the disease Psoriasis - a term derived from the Greek work "psora" meaning "itch". Amazingly, Psoriasis was a disease that had been misunderstood from more than 2,000 years before it was clearly defined and named what we know it as today.
AussieGuy (Delving into history)
