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| Psoriasis and Psoriatic Arthritis |
| This page was written by Shelley Ensz, and has not yet been medically edited. See Disclaimer. |
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| What is Psoriasis and Psoriatic Arthritis? |
| Psoriasis Health Center. WebMD. |
| What is Psoriatic Arthritis? Not everyone with psoriasis develops psoriatic arthritis, but everyone with psoriatic arthritis has psoriasis. Most people develop the skin signs of psoriasis first and are later diagnosed with psoriatic arthritis. Joint pain in people with psoriatic arthritis can range from mild to severe. Mayo Clinic. |
| National Psoriasis Foundation. The National Psoriasis Foundation is a patient-driven, nonprofit organization that is the voice for the millions of Americans affected by psoriasis and psoriatic arthritis. |
| Causes of Psoriasis |
| A Genome-Wide Association Study of Psoriasis (PS) and Psoriatic Arthritis (PSA) Identifies New Disease Loci. This study revealed that the MHC(multiple histocompatibility locus antigen cluster) is truly the most important risk factor for PS and that it plays a very major role in PSA, confirmed recently identified associations with interleukin 23 receptor and interleukin 12B in both PS and PSA, and identified new associations. Liu Y. PLoS Genet 4(3): e1000041. 04/04/08. |
| Psoriasis: 7 New Genetic Clues. Newly discovered genetic variations may make psoriasis more likely. One of the newly discovered variants is in a genetic region tied to four other autoimmune diseases: celiac disease, type 1 diabetes, Grave's disease, and rheumatoid arthritis. WebMD. 04/03/08. |
| New Study Shows Smoking Increases Risk Of Psoriasis. Researchers have found that smoking increases the risk of developing psoriasis, heavier smoking increases the risk further, and the risk decreases only slowly after quitting. Medical News Today. 10/29/07. |
| MicroRNA may play an important role in psoriasis and eczema. MicroRNA are small RNA molecules that regulate gene expression, and by acting on many different proteins and different cellular mechanisms in skin and immune cells these small RNA molecules may be an important factor in the development of disease. Therapies based on microRNA might therefore in the future become more effective than medicines targeted at individual proteins. News-Medical.net. 07/12/07. |
| Patients with Psoriatic Arthritis Have an Increased Number of Lymphocytes in the Duodenal Mucosa in Comparison with Patients with Psoriasis Vulgaris. The increased lymphocyte infiltration in the duodenal mucosa in PsA, but not in PsV, might indicate different pathogenetic mechanisms in these psoriasis variants. J Rheumatol 2006 May;33:924-7. |
| University of Michigan (UM) scientists identify major Psoriasis susceptibility gene. UM scientists have found a common genetic variation in an immune system gene that makes people much more likely to develop psoriasis. Named PSORS1, the gene is the first genetic determinant of psoriasis to be definitively identified in a large clinical study. Its discovery could lead to new, more effective treatments without the risks and side-effects of current therapies. EurekAlert 03/15/06. |
| Understanding the Pathogenesis of Psoriasis, Psoriatic Arthritis, and Autoimmunity via a Fusion of Molecular Genetics and Immunology. The advantage of genetics approaches to understanding diseases such as those of the immune system is that one can identify novel genes and pathways that were not previously suspected as being involved in either the immune system or tolerance. PubMed. Immunol Res. 2005;32(1-3):45-56. |
| Activation of psoriasis in patients undergoing treatment with interferon-beta. Traditionally lithium, beta blockers, NSAIDs, ACE inhibitors and antimalarials have been associated with psoriasis, but interferon can also be a triggering factor. PubMed. Ugeskr Laeger. 2005 Aug 8;167(32):2903-4. |
| Complications of Psoriasis |
| Increased frequency of pulmonary hypertension (PH) in psoriasis patients. Echocardiographic follow-up of psoriasis patients may be important due to possible association of PH. However, incidences of structural heart disease and arrythmia are not increased in psoriasis according to our results. (SpringerLink) Archives of Dermatological Research. April 30, 2008. |
| Cardiovascular risk profile of patients with psoriatic arthritis (PsA) compared to controls-the role of inflammation. PsA may be associated with obesity, hypertension, dyslipidaemia and insulin resistance because of the shared inflammatory pathway. L.-S. Tam. Rheumatology Online. April 9, 2008. |
| Psoriasis Patients Need Rigorous Screening For Co-Morbidities. Psoriasis patients should undergo a comprehensive work-up for associated diseases, a Canadian investigator said here at a journalists workshop held in support of World Psoriasis Day. Medical News Today. 10/30/07. |
| Psoriasis increases the risk of a heart attack. The researchers believe the immune abnormalities which cause the skin condition may also increase the risk of heart problems and say their findings support other research which has found that many chronic inflammatory diseases might be linked to heart disease by a shared mechanism. News-Medical.Net. 10/11/06. |
| Systemic sclerosis could mask the presentation of psoriasis in a patient with symptomatic and bilateral sacroiliitis. Psoriatic sacroiliitis could not be diagnosed, but, on the basis of these observations, the patient described could represent a case of PsA without psoriasis, and psoriatic cutaneous involvement masked by the presence of SSc. PubMed. Scand J Rheumatol. 2003;32(3):186-8. |
| Diagnosis of Psoriasis |
| Ultrasound biomicroscopy (UBM) in the diagnosis of skin diseases. We conclude that UBM is a non-invasive diagnostic tool in dermatology which can be used to give valuable information about disease progress and the effectiveness of therapy. PubMed. Eur J Dermatol. 2007 Oct 19;17(6):469-475. (Also see: Morphea ) |
| The Modified Nail Psoriasis Severity Index: Validation of an Instrument to Assess Psoriatic Nail Involvement in Patients with Psoriatic Arthritis. The mNAPSI demonstrated excellent interrater reliability and construct validity, and may be a valuable tool. J Rheumatol 2007 January;34:123–9. |
| Treatments for Psoriasis |
| Frequency and duration of clinical remission in patients with peripheral psoriatic arthritis requiring second-line drugs. Remission is possible in up to 24% of patients with peripheral PsA. It is significantly more frequent, but not longer, in patients receiving anti-TNF drugs compared with those treated with traditional DMARDs. F. Cantini. Rheumatology Access Online. April 9, 2008. |
| Treatment of Psoriatic Arthritis (PsA) and Rheumatoid Arthritis (RA) with Disease Modifying Drugs: Comparison of Drugs and Adverse Reactions. For both diseases methotrexate (MTX) was the most frequently used disease modifying drug (39% of patients with PsA, 30% with RA), with over 70% of patients in both diseases still taking the drug. Journal of Rheumatology. Vol 35: No. 3 March 2008. (Also see: RA ) |
| The impact of infliximab treatment on quality of life in patients with inflammatory rheumatic diseases. Patients in large randomized controlled studies of infliximab in Rheumatoid Arthritis, psoriatic arthritis, and ankylosing spondylitis had similar impairment in physical aspects of health-related quality of life (HRQoL) at baseline and showed significantly greater improvement in HRQoL after treatment with infliximab. Arthritis Research & Therapy 2007, 9:R103. (Also see: RA and Medications ) |
| Green Tea Holds Promise As New Treatment For Inflammatory Skin Diseases. Green tea could hold promise as a new treatment for skin disorders such as psoriasis and dandruff, Medical College of Georgia researchers say. Science Daily. 08/07/07. (Also see: Alternative Therapies ) |
| Abbott Seeks U.S. And E.U. Regulatory Approval For HUMIRA® (Adalimumab) In Psoriasis. Psoriasis is a non-contagious, chronic autoimmune disease that causes the body to attack itself and create raised, inflamed, scaly, red skin lesions known as plaques, which may crack and bleed. The global submissions are based on the results of two double-blind, placebo-controlled trials of HUMIRA - REVEAL and CHAMPION. In both trials, reduction in disease activity was determined. Medical News Today. 04/02/07. |
| New Phase III Data Show Abbott's HUMIRA ® (adalimumab) Was Statistically Superior To Methotrexate In Patients With Psoriasis. More than twice the percentage of patients (80 percent) with moderate to severe psoriasis receiving Abbott's HUMIRA (adalimumab), achieved at least 75 percent improvement in disease extent and severity after 16 weeks compared to patients receiving methotrexate (36 percent), a standard systemic treatment for psoriasis. Medical News Today. 10/06/06. |
| Cream with ingredients from fish can relieve Psoriasis and Eczema. A new skin cream has shown promising results in the treatment of psoriasis and eczema. The cream contains fish enzymes and gelatine. innovations report. 03/23/06. |
