Background: Psoriasis has a wide range of clinical presentations, unresolved etiology, association with distress, and no definitive treatment. It is very important to have a greater familiarity with the signs and symptoms of the disease so that appropriate treatment can be provided at its earliest. Therefore, this study aimed at understanding the clinical patterns & epidemiological profile of psoriasis.

Materials & methods: This observational, cross-sectional study was conducted over a duration of 18 months in the Department of Dermatology of a tertiary care hospital. The study included all the patients visiting the department who were diagnosed with psoriasis. A clinical examination and biopsy (if needed) were performed. Body mass index (BMI), age of onset, duration, patterns of skin lesions, percentage body surface area (BSA) of involvement, presence of nail psoriasis, and presence of Psoriatic arthropathy, and psoriasis area severity index (PASI)were assessed.

Results: The study included 152 subjects; most of the subjects were 21-60 years old (81.5%). Men are more likely to be affected than women. Most commonly patients present with the complaint of itching (82.4%).The mean±standard deviation of the age of onset was 33.90±14.27 years and the PASI score was 7.6475±5.88. Psoriasis vulgaris, which accounts for 69.38% of cases, is determined to be the most prevalent form of the disease, followed by palmoplantar psoriasis, which accounts for 16.25% of cases.

Conclusion: The epidemiological characteristics of psoriasis observed in this study are comparable to those observed in other parts of the world.