Every year the National Psoriasis Foundation issues reports about new discoveries and findings related to psoriasis that are largely funded with donations from families of psoriasis patients, patients themselves, and physicians who want to find better treatment (and eventually a cure) for psoriasis.  Stephen Mahoney, M.D. is a top specialist treating psoriasis in Houston who also keeps abreast of research efforts so that he can better treat his psoriasis patients.  Through these research efforts we now know that psoriasis, heart disease and obesity are related illnesses, and research scientists are working to better comprehend these relationships.  Other promising research, though in its very early stages, is using full body imaging to view areas of inflammation in psoriasis patients.  Researchers expect to see evidence of inflammation on the inside of the skin, but they are also finding vascular inflammation even in patients who had no history of heart or vascular disease.  The psoriasis research grants funded by the National Psoriasis Foundation have a long way to go in helping to find a cure, but each new discovery is like finding a new piece to the puzzle that helps physicians and scientists to see a more complete picture.