Identification of Risk Factors for Psoriatic Arthritis

Psoriatic Arthritis (PsA) is a chronic inflammatory disease that can be progressive and may be associated with permanent joint damage and disability.Though rare in the general population, it is common in patients with psoriasis, affecting about 6-10% of psoriasis patients over all with significantly higher estimates (20-40%) in patients with more extensive skin disease 1, 2 .In most patients with PsA, the symptoms do not develop until years after the onset of cutaneous psoriasis.As a result, patients with psoriasis (Ps) represent a unique opportunity to identify individuals at very high risk of developing a chronic inflammatory arthropathy (i.e.PsA).In order to determine which patients with psoriasis are at greatest risk of developing PsA it is essential that risk factors be identified using robust epidemiological approaches.