Last updated January 21, 2013
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Welcome! We're glad that you found us!

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This website is brought to you by Chris and Laura Phillips.  This site is funded exclusively from the authors' private means as a public service to the ichthyosis community; no advertising of any kind is accepted.  This site strives to improve the ichthyosis community's resources, raise awareness and support, and provide an easy-access meeting place.  Individuals, families, and friends affected by ichthyosis are the intended audience for this site.

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Although the Bulletin Board and Chatroom are perennial favorites for users of this site, we hope that you'll take time to explore all of what's here.

If Ichthyosis Information has been helpful to you and you'd like to give back to the ichthyosis community in return, please:

Learning About Ichthyosis                         

Ichthyosis (ick-thee-o-ses) is the name of a rare genetic skin disorder.  Since it's a genetic mutation, it isn't contagious--you can't "catch" it. Ichthyosis causes the skin to build up and scale, causing it to be extremely dry, among other problems.

Most types of ichthyosis are present at birth, and are life-long.  Currently, there is no cure, only treatments.  To find out more about ichthyosis, check out Show-N-Tell.

We hope that you'll find lots of good ichthyosis information through this site.  However, the information on this site is primarily practical information being shared by people who have ichthyosis themselves--it's not information from medically trained or qualified professionals.  

 

No matter how thorough or instructive you find this information, you must have a good working relationship with a physician.  For something as rare as ichthyosis, you'll probably need to find a dermatologist who is familiar with ichthyosis to have the kind of relationship you want. 

::Support FIRST! :: Matt's Message for Kids :: My View on Ichthyosis
image of FIRST's logoThe Foundation for Ichthyosis and Related Skin Types (F.I.R.S.T.) is the only national nonprofit in the United States dedicated to helping families affected by the genetic skin diseases collectively known as the ichthyoses.  

If you're interested in ichthyosis,  F.I.R.S.T. has a lot to offer and deserves your support.  See F.I.R.S.T.'s website for more information.

Read Matt's Message for Kids.  Matt has lamellar ichthyosis.  He wrote this message when he was 8 years old so other children could hear his perspectives on life with ichthyosis.

You can also read notes from Matt's Mom.

Want to get a sense of who I am and my views on living with ichthyosis? I wrote this to describe my perspective.  Although I wrote this in 2007 (we've since moved and I have a new job now), my views on ichthyosis haven't changed much.