New global event focuses on childhood psoriasis

October 29 is World Psoriasis Day. Conceived by patients for patients, World Psoriasis Day is a truly global event focusing on the burden of living with psoriasis. There are more than 125 million people with psoriasis/psoriatic arthritis in the world. Many are children. Psoriasis is a severe chronic inflammatory disease that effects all ages, genders, races and ethnicities.

The theme of World Psoriasis Day 2010 is: Childhood psoriasis - a challenge for all

"Childhood psoriasis is difficult in many ways and affects the whole family. Treatment options are much fewer than for adults. Getting a child with severe psoriasis in the family, who needs constant care, is a concern for all; parents, siblings, relatives and friends. In preschool and primary school relationships with class mates will be very important, sometimes including the risk of bullying and discrimination. This is why awareness raising about the disease must be prioritized and repeated again and again, since new generations are coming and growing up all the time." Lars Ettarp, President of IFPA says.

Encouraging all children in the world to join, IFPA arranged the World Psoriasis Day International Drawing Competition for Children. The drawing competition which took place both a national and global level was launched together with the new mascot for World Psoriasis Day; the World Psoriasis Day Teddy Bear called Ted, who suffers from psoriasis.

The IFPA Member associations asked children in all ages to send in a drawing to a national drawing contest. The drawing should feature 3 things: Psoriasis, a Teddy bear and a feeling (to be reflected in the drawing.) The national Psoriasis association selected a drawing as national winner to be competing for the country in the global contest. The winning drawing from each competing country was sent to the IFPA Secretariat to compete on a global level. A short presentation of the young artist and a description of the drawing in the artist's own words were also enclosed. At the EADV Congress in Gothenburg Oct 7-10, the winning drawings from all over the world were presented as an Art Gallery in the IFPA Booth in the exhibition. The almost 8 000 delegates of the EADV Congress; professors, doctors and scientists from all over the world, were invited to vote for the global winner.

We are today, at World Psoriasis Day 2010, happy to announce and warmly congratulate the winner.

Congratulations Faya Priem, from the Netherlands

Faya is 6 years old and she has had psoriasis since she was 3 years old. She says: Sometimes it is worse; sometimes it gets a bit better. Sometimes it gives her big problems.

Faya wrote a poem on her drawing:

'Hello Sun, Hello Sea, Please, take the spots away from me….'

The word on the sailing boat means: 'itching'

Please visit www.worldpsoriasisday.com (http://www.worldpsoriasisday.com/) for more information and to see the winning drawing and the finalists. The story of our WPD Teddy bear and his psoriasis, teddy postcard and illustrations can also be downloaded there.