Unseen Risk: Lifestyle, physical problems may underlie psoriasis link to early mortality

Severe psoriasis knocks as many years off a person’s life expectancy as high blood pressure does, a new study suggests.

Psoriasis is a skin disease that causes an overproduction of skin cells. Most people use topical treatments on the thick patches of skin that develop. But the disease can be itchy and painful, and those with moderate disease often resort to ultraviolet-light therapy.