Psoriatic arthritis is a form of arthritis associated with psoriasis, a chronic skin and nail disease characterized by red, scaly rashes and thick, pitted fingernails. The disease is similar to rheumatoid arthritis in symptoms, characterized by joint inflammation. However, psoriatic arthritis tends to affect fewer joints than rheumatoid arthritis and does not produce the typical rheumatoid arthritis antibodies.
Although the specific cause of psoriatic arthritis is unknown, psoriatic arthritis is an autoimmune disease. Psoriatic arthritis involves your:
Most people who get psoriatic arthritis have one or more of the following:
Psoriatic arthritis usually appears about 5 to 12 years after psoriasis begins. Most people develop it between 30 and 50 years of age. But psoriatic arthritis can begin at any age.
It is equally common in men and women. Not everyone who gets psoriasis will eventually develop psoriatic arthritis.
For most people, psoriatic arthritis develops years after psoriasis. Contact your dermatologist if you have psoriasis and any of these signs or symptoms:
Treatment usually involves treating both the skin condition and the joint inflammation. Some medications that UCLA dermatologists use to treat rheumatoid arthritis are also used to treat psoriatic arthritis, including:
Other treatment may include:
For more information or to schedule an appointment, call (310) 825-6911.
