The treatment of psoriasis is mainly based on anti-inflammatory and/or anti-hyperproliferative agents. The topical steroids appeared in the fifties and were the first therapeutic breakthrough for psoriasis, followed by methotrexate and phototherapy in the sixties, photochemotherapy (PUVA) in the seventies and acitretin and cyclosporine in the eighties. The targeted biologic therapies represent a whole new era of therapeutic possibilities with a highly beneficial safety record. The choice of treatment depends on a large series of factors, including the type and extend of the psoriasis, the patient's preferences, co-medications, comorbidities and drug tolerance. This overview presents the currently available topical and systemic agents for treating psoriasis, including topical corticosteroids, vitamin D derivatives, UV-light based therapies, methotrexate, cyclosporine, acitretin, and the biologic agents such as the TNF antagonists etanercept, adalimumab and infliximab, as well as the anti-p40 IL12/23 agent ustekinumab. Newer, very promising, agents aiming the Th17 pathway are under development for psoriasis.
Keywords: TNF antagonists,; UV light,; corticosteroids,; psoriasis,; quality of life; therapeutics,.