Interplay among antioxidants and oxidants in psoriasis

ABSTRACT

The etiology of psoriasis, a chronic inflammatory skin disease, has not been elucidated. However, Oxidant / antioxidant imbalance is suspected. The aim of this study was to evaluate oxidant / antioxidant status in psoriatic patients. Forty two psoriatic patients and 42 age and sex matched controls were recruited for this study. Serum total antioxidant capacity [TAC], oxidized light density lipoprotein [Ox-LDL] and malondialdehyde [MDA] levels were determined. A statistically significant increase in the serum level of MDA was found between patients and controls. No significant difference was found in the serum levels of other parameters in the two groups. Our results supported the hypothesis of an imbalance between oxidants and antioxidants in psoriasis and pointed to the probability of an increased risk of cardiovascular diseases in psoriatic patients