What is psoriatic arthritis?

Assoc. Professor Peter Youssef
Rheumatologist

Psoriatic arthritis is an inflammatory condition of joints associated with psoriasis. Patients may have psoriasis at the time they develop the arthritis or there may only be a family history of psoriasis. In about 20% of patients the psoriasis may occur after the arthritis. Five per cent of the population has psoriasis and about 20% of patients with psoriasis can develop some form of inflammatory joint disease. Psoriatic arthritis occurs in about 1% of the population.

Dr. Mona Marabani
Rheumatologist
 

Psoriatic arthritis is a little bit more difficult to characterise because there are a few different patterns with this disease. It can look exactly like rheumatoid arthritis so small joints of the hands and feet. Sometimes it can affect the spine and cause stiffening and pain of the spine, more like ankylosing spondylitis, and at other times it could look like a combination of the two. So the key features really are pain, and stiffness, and swelling.