DID YOU KNOW?

  • Psoriatic arthritis (sore-ee-AA-tic) is a type of inflammatory arthritis that usually appears in people with a skin disease called psoriasis (sore-EYE-ah-sis).
  • Between 10 – 30 per cent of people with psoriasis will get psoriatic arthritis (PsA).
  • PsA affects both men and women in equal numbers and usually appears between the ages of 20 and 50.

There is no cure for PsA, but when you are diagnosed early and start the right treatment, you can take control of your disease and avoid severe damage to your joints. Most people with PsA can lead active and productive lives with the help of the right medication, surgery (in some cases), exercise, rest and joint protection techniques.

Psoriatic Arthritis

The word arthritis means inflammation of the joint (“arthr” meaning joint and “itis” meaning inflammation). Inflammation is a medical term describing pain, stiffness, redness and swelling.

There are more than 100 types of arthritis. Some are caused by joint inflammation, while others are caused by progressive bone and joint damage. Arthritis is among the leading causes of disability in Canada, affecting more than four million people of every age, physical condition and ethnic background.

Psoriasis is an autoimmune disease that occurs when the immune system becomes confused and decides to “attack” the skin. This results in red (inflamed) patches of skin, which are covered with a silvery-white scale. Psoriasis can involve only a few small patches of skin to much larger areas of the skin. In most people, psoriasis tends to be mild and some don’t even realize they have it at all.

Psoriatic arthritis (PsA) is a type of inflammatory arthritis and an autoimmune disease. In PsA, the joints are the target of the immune attack. This causes swelling, pain and warmth (inflammation) in the joints. In most people, psoriatic arthritis starts after the onset of psoriasis. Yet having psoriasis does not mean you will have PsA. In fact, most people with psoriasis will never develop psoriatic arthritis.

PsA usually begins slowly, spreading to other joints over a few weeks to a few months. In rare instances, PsA can develop quickly and be severe. PsA is an unusual type of arthritis because it can look very different from person to person.

Doctors have discovered five general patterns of psoriatic arthritis. In the asymmetric pattern, one of the mildest forms, the psoriatic arthritis affects one to three joints on different sides of the body. In the symmetric pattern, PsA involves many more joints and looks very much like rheumatoid arthritis. In the distal pattern, PsA involves the end joints of the fingers closest to the nails. In the spinal pattern, PsA involves the joints of the spine and the sacroiliac joints linking the spine to the pelvis. Finally, in the destructive pattern, which affects only a few people, PsA is a severe, painful, deforming type of arthritis. This is also known as arthritis mutilans.

PsA can also cause inflammation in tendons around the joints. This is called enthesitis (en-thees-EYE-tis). Some of the common spots for this are the back of the heels, underneath the bottoms of the feet and on the outside of the hips. In other people, PsA can cause the fingers or toes to swell up like sausages. This is referred to as a dactylitis (dac-till-EYE-tis).

 

Reference: https://www.arthritis.ca/page.aspx?pid=1011