Diagnosing Psoriatic Arthritis from the Dermatologist’s View

Psoriatic arthritis is a chronic inflammatory arthropathy associated with skin psoriasis. It is considered a unique arthropathy with distinct clinical and radiologic features. Up to 40% of patients with psoriasis may develop psoriatic arthritis. Psoriasis usually precedes psoriatic arthritis, so dermatologists are in a critical position for screening patients of psoriatic arthritis early in the disease course. Psoriatic arthritis may be challenging to diagnose, especially for dermatologists, because it has an insidious disease course, non-specific symptoms, and no specific biomarkers. Psoriatic arthritis is a polygenic autoimmune disorder of unknown etiology, but immunologic roles have recently been validated. In recent years, treatment modalities have rapidly advanced in the fields of psoriasis and psoriatic arthritis. Biologic agents, including TNF-α inhibitors and anti-IL12/23 agents, have shown dramatic improvement.