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Page: History
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Psoriasis is probably one of the longest known illnesses of humans and simultaneously one of the most misjudged and misunderstood. Some scholars believe psoriasis to have been included among the skin conditions called tzaraat in the Bible. In more recent times psoriasis was frequently described as a variety of leprosy. It became known as Willan's lepra in the late 18th century when English dermatologists Robert Willan and Thomas Bateman differentiated it from other skin diseases. They assigned names to the condition based on the appearance of lesions. Willan identified two categories: leprosa graecorum and psora leprosa.
While it may have been visually, and later semantically, confused with leprosy it was not until 1841 that the condition was finally given the name psoriasis by the Viennese dermatologist Ferdinand von Hebra. The name is derived from the Greek word psora which means to itch.
It was during the 20th century that psoriasis was further differentiated into specific types.
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