A Case Of Psoriatic Arthritis

Psoriatic arthritis affects approximately 2% of the Caucasian population living in the U.S. Psoriatic arthritis is a systemic rheumatic disease. It causes inflammation of body tissues surrounding the joints as well as the skin. Tissues that are typically involved include the eyes, lungs, kidneys and the heart.

This disease is really the diagnosis of psoriasis and arthritis put together. Psoriasis is an inflammation of the skin, which is itchy, patchy, and in most cases, scaley. It can appear on any part of your body, where there is skin. Arthritis refers to the inflammation of the joints. If severe, arthritis can affect your ability to function on a day-to-day basis as simple tasks, such as buttoning of your shirt, can become unmanageable.

Psoriatic arthritis is usually diagnosed in the age bracket of 40-50 years old. It is more likely that you have been diagnosed with psoriasis first and arthritis later in life. Statistics indicate that 15% of those with the disease were diagnosed with arthritis first.

Like psoriasis, no specific causes of psoriatic arthritis are known. What is suspect is the combination of immune deficiencies and genetics. Environmental factors as well as diet have also been blamed as triggers for this condition.Heredity is suspected because certain genes have been found to be common in those who have psoriatic arthritis including the HLA-B27 gene marker. If you are interested to find out, there is a blood test to help determine if this gene marker is present in your blood.

Psoriatic arthritis is most usually felt at the knees, ankles, and the joints of the feet. Typically only a few of these joints are inflamed at any one time. With an inflammation, you get the sensation of pain, soreness and stiffness. If the inflammation is in your finger or toe, the swelling can cause your entire digit to look like a sausage. Usually the individual is stiffer in the morning but the stiffness eases with movement.

It is common to develop an inflammation in the tendons called “tendonitis”. The tendons surround the cartilage. When there is inflammation in the tendon located behind the heel, you can find it hard to walk or climb stairs. This condition is often referred to as Achilles tendonitis.

Unfortunately, the pain from psoriatic arthritis is not necessarily localised. It can also spread to inflammation in other organs such as the aorta artery of the heart, the lungs, and the eyes.

Many of those who suffer from psoriatic arthritis are also inflicted with acne and nail psoriasis. Hence, depression is often the case for those with psoriatic arthritis.

Your doctor will order appropriate laboratory tests, on top of clinical observations and taking note of your medical history, while making a diagnosis. The blood tests: sedimentation rate, and the rheumatoid factor test are performed to see if there is an elevation of cells, which will indicate an inflammation on the joints and to exclude the disease rheumatoid arthritis.