Clinical and Genetic Risk Factors Associated with Psoriatic Arthritis among Patients with Psoriasis

Abstract

Introduction: Psoriatic arthritis (PsA) is a chronic, inflammatory arthritis that affects an estimated 30% of patients with psoriasis. PsA is underdiagnosed in primary care and dermatology clinics due to a variety of reasons, including failure of healthcare providers to ask about symptoms, overlap of symptoms and signs with other rheumatologic conditions, and lack of a specific diagnostic test. A delay in PsA diagnosis and treatment, even as short as 6 months, can lead to decreased quality of life, increased joint damage, and worse long-term physical function. In this study, we sought to identify the clinical and genetic factors that help discriminate patients with PsA from those with cutane..