Scientists investigate prevalence of psoriatic arthritis
A new study suggests that nearly 14 per cent of people with the skin condition psoriasis go on to develop psoriatic arthritis, although the study authors note that the true figure is actually likely to be lower.
Figures show that around one in 50 people have psoriasis and a proportion of these go on to develop psoriatic arthritis, which causes inflammation in and around the joints.
Researchers at the University of Leeds and St Luke's Hospital in Bradford set out to investigate the prevalence of psoriatic arthritis in people with psoriasis.
They received completed questionnaires from 168 people with the skin condition, who were registered with two large general practices.
Of these, 93 were examined and the researchers found that 12 of these patients fulfilled the clinical criteria for psoriatic arthritis.
Writing in the journal Arthritis Care & Research, the researchers estimated that the prevalence of psoriatic arthritis among patients with psoriasis was 13.8 per cent.
However, they noted: "Misclassification of psoriasis and arthritis, and response bias, indicate that this is probably an overestimate."
There is no definitive test for psoriatic arthritis and it can be hard for doctors to tell the difference between psoriatic arthritis and rheumatoid arthritis.
In general, patients are checked for psoriasis together with arthritis and inflammation in at least one joint, but it can be difficult to give a definitive diagnosis. For this reason, determining a true figure for the prevalence of psoriatic arthritis remains problematic.
The Arthritis Research Campaign is funding a major new clinical trial into psoriatic arthritis, comparing standard treatment against a more intensive drug regime in early disease.
© Adfero Ltd
Recent related stories:
05 February 2010
03 February 2010
02 February 2010
02 February 2010
01 February 2010
01 February 2010
01 February 2010
RSS feed 