The term “ichthyosis” is a skin disorder usually causing dry, scaly skin. It affects approximately 1 in 250 people and is usually an autosomal dominant inherited disorder; although a rare non-hereditary version called "acquired ichthyosis" exists to this day in the modern era. The disease is not life-threatening, however, the impact on the patient, if it is a mild case, is usually regulated by mild itching and the social impression of having skin of unusual appearance will greatly affect those around the person. People with mild cases have symptoms that include scaly patches on the shins, fine white scales on the forearms and upper arms, and rough palms. These severe cases involve a “build-up” of scales everywhere. Additionally, when the “buildup” of dander is depraved, the person with a severe case suffers from “prickly itch” when they need to sweat but cannot because of the dander. Different contemporary treatments are offered to “exfoliate” the scales. These include lotions containing alpha hydroxy acids. There are many types of hereditary ichthyosis, most of which involve the skin only. Therefore, certain areas of the skin may be more severely affected than other parts of the body. Some types of ichthyosis involve the internal organs as well as the skin and are called syndromic types of ichthyosis. However, there is a growing trend to categorize hereditary ichthyosis based on the gene that caused it. They are generally classified according to their clinical appearance. The types are: ichthyosis vulgaris, which is characterized by mild scaling and dryness of the skin and is an X-linked recessive ichthyosis, epidermolytic ichthyosis or epidermolytic hyperkeratosis, which is characterized...... middle of paper ...... or sources of the disorder, as well as proposing more effective treatments. However, the genes responsible for the majority of ichthyosis situations have been characterized; there are a small number of people with the disease who do not have a genetic alteration in one of their known DNA strands. It is for this reason that researchers will continue to search for genes involved in the disease. They are also researching countless methods to influence affected genes to prevent disease. Other scientists are busy developing pharmaceuticals that contain novel moisturizers, or products that soften the outer layer of skin and make it retain more moisture than it usually would. An example of this would be new production of topical "keratolytics" that comfort or relax the keratin of the nail..