Traditional Uses of Herbal Medicine for the Treatment of Psoriasis

The study aimed to provide a systematic review of the in vitro, in vivo, and clinical studies to support traditional uses of herbal medicine for psoriasis treatment. Psoriasis is an autoimmune condition that affects your skin. Its main symptoms are scaly patches that appear red or silvery-white. Psoriasis affects at least 2 percent of the population and is often accompanied by a related condition called psoriatic arthritis. Psoriasis treatment methods vary, from topical creams to light therapy to oral medication. More and more research is being done to discover natural remedies for treating psoriasis. The systematic review was performed by combining three databases, i.e., PubMed, ScienceDirect, and Scopus, using the search terms “Psoriasis” AND “Herbal medicine” AND/OR “Traditional medicine.”. A total of 1,822 articles from PubMed, ScienceDirect, and Scopus databases were downloaded to the EndNote database. Five hundred and seventy-four articles were excluded, and further analysis of the titles and abstracts of the remaining 1,248 articles led to the exclusion of 917 articles. Most were related to plants or recipes used in Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) (63 articles and 207 plants). Research targeting inflammatory and proliferative processes in disease pathogenesis, development, and progression has been extensive. The antipsoriasis activities of several plants used in traditional medicine for psoriasis have been confirmed in different experimental models in conjunction with their underlying mechanisms of action at the molecular and cellular levels. Research targeting inflammatory and proliferative processes in disease pathogenesis, development, and progression has been an extensive area. Apoptotic molecules and signalling pathways, immune cells (T-cells, dendritic cells, monocytes, neutrophils, and macrophages), and inflammatory molecules and signalling pathways, were the main targets of most plants' antipsoriasis activity. Plants targeting other signaling molecules should be further investigated.