Treatment of severe psoriasis with intravenous somatostatin

Psoriasis in association with prolactinoma: three cases

We report three women with plaque-type psoriasis in whom increase in severity and extent of the skin lesions correlated with the development of a prolactinoma. In all three patients, administration of bromocriptine, a dopamine agonist that suppresses the secretion of prolactin, improved the therapeutic response of the psoriasis. To our knowledge, there are no reports of an association between psoriasis and prolactinoma. In recent years it has become apparent that prolactin plays an important part in the immune reactions and exerts a proliferative effect on human keratinocytes. We, therefore, discuss the part that prolactin may play in the pathogenesis of psoriasis.

Acromegaly and psoriasis

A 56-year-old man with long-standing chronic plaque psoriasis was noted to be acromegalic. Investigations confirmed the presence of a large pituitary adenoma and following treatment of this by hypophysectomy his psoriasis cleared dramatically within 3 weeks.