musculoskeletal and connective tissue disorders
Psoriatic Arthritis
Introduction
Psoriatic arthritis is a seronegative Overview of Seronegative Spondyloarthropathies and chronic inflammatory arthritis that occurs in people with psoriasis of the skin or nails. The arthritis is often asymmetric, and some forms involve the distal interphalangeal joints. Diagnosis is clinical. Treatment involves disease-modifying antirheumatic drugs (DMARDs) and biologic agents. Psoriatic arthritis develops in about 30% of patients with Psoriasis . Prevalence is increased in patients with AIDS. Risk is increased in patients with human leukocyte antigen B27 (HLA-B27) or some other specific alleles (HLA-Cw6, HLA-B38, HLA-B39, HLA-DR) in family members. Etiology and pathophysiology of psoriatic arthritis are unknown. 