About 2.1 percent of the U.S. population has psoriasis

• More than 4.5 million American men and women have psoriasis, or about one in 50 Americans
  
  
• Average age of onset is 28.
  
  
• Often appears between the ages of 15 and 35, but can develop at any age.
  
  
• 10 percent to 15 percent of those with psoriasis get it before age 10
  
  
• Some infants have psoriasis, although this is considered rare.
  
  
• Annually, 20,000 children under 10 years of age are diagnosed with psoriasis.
  
  
• About 30 percent of people with psoriasis have cases that are considered moderate to severe (generally meaning it covers more than 3 percent of their body).
  
  
• More than 1.5 million Americans have moderate to severe psoriasis.
  
  
• Severe types of psoriasis can compromise the skin's ability to control body temperature and prevent infections.
  
  
• 30 percent of patients under a dermatologist's care have psoriasis so extensive or difficult to control that prescription topical (rub on) therapies are not adequate.
  

75 percent of people with moderate to severe psoriasis report that their disease has a moderate to large impact on their everyday lives:

- 26 percent alter their normal daily activities
- 21 percent stop their normal daily activities
- 40 percent say their psoriasis affects their clothing choices (avoiding dark
   colors,  covering up arms and legs)
- 36 percent say it affects how they sleep
- 36 percent report bathing more than normal

• Psoriasis appears to be slightly more prevalent in women than in men.
  
  
• Psoriasis may disqualify a person from serving in the U.S. military.
  
  
• On average, 350 people die from psoriasis or complications of its treatment annually.
  
  
• 400 people a year are granted disability by the Social Security Administration because of psoriasis.
  
  
• About 1 million people in the U.S. population have psoriatic arthritis; that equals about 0.5 percent of the country.
  
  
• Between 10 percent and 30 percent of people with psoriasis develop psoriatic arthritis.
  
  
• Psoriatic arthritis usually develops between the ages of 30 and 50, but it can develop at any time.
  
  
• Generally psoriasis appears before the psoriatic arthritis, but it can develop without the characteristic skin lesions.
  
  
• There are five types of psoriatic arthritis.
  
  
• Psoriasis patients make nearly 2.4 million visits to dermatologists each year.
  
  
• Overall costs of treating psoriasis may exceed $3 billion annually.
  
  
• 150,000 to 260,000 cases of psoriasis are diagnosed each year.
  
  
• If one parent has psoriasis, children have a 10 percent to 25 percent chance of developing psoriasis.
  
  
• If both parents have psoriasis, children have a 50 percent chance.

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