No, psoriasis is not contagious. It is not an infectious disease.

Effective treatment can send psoriasis into remission, making symptoms disappear for weeks to months at a time but there is not yet a permanent cure for the disease.

If you have a family history, you can help to prevent or minimize the chances of developing psoriasis by reducing stress, avoiding smoking, obesity or being over-weight and discussing with your physician any medications you take.

Psoriasis often returns after treatment is stopped. Stopping some treatments abruptly, such as corticosteroids, can rarely trigger a more severe form of psoriasis.

An individual can have different forms of psoriasis appearing at once or at different times.