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High prevalence of psoriatic arthritis in dermatological patients with psoriasis: a cross-sectional study

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Abstract

The exact prevalence of psoriatic arthritis (PsA) among patients with psoriasis is still not conclusive. Data in the literature vary between 5.8 and 30 %. Objective of this study was to gain more information on the prevalence of PsA among patients with psoriasis in Germany. Between 09/2010 and 05/2011, consecutive patients from dermatological private practices and a university hospital with psoriasis were asked to fill out the validated German Psoriatic Arthritis Diagnostic (GEPARD) Questionnaire. Patients who answered ≥4 questions with “yes” were invited to come for a rheumatological check up. Those patients who refused a rheumatological examination were counted as “absence of PsA”. Laboratory tests for inflammatory markers as well as the severity of skin manifestations were assessed. The diagnosis of PsA was made according to the CASPAR criteria, and imaging was performed in addition. A total of 404 questionnaires were evaluated; 50.5 % answered ≥4 questions positively; 19.3 % had a history of PsA confirmed by a rheumatologist; and in 10.9 %, PsA or spondyloarthritis was newly diagnosed during the present study. This leads to an overall prevalence of PsA in patients with psoriasis of 30.2 %. The frequency of psoriatic arthritis in the present study is higher than expected from previous studies in Germany. The prevalence is consistent with findings of a large observational survey from Scandinavia. Using the CASPAR criteria and imaging in all patients, certainty of the diagnosis is very high. The GEPARD Questionnaire is a helpful tool to identify people at risk for psoriatic arthritis.

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Acknowledgments

We also thank Dr. R. Denfeld, Dr. A. Philipp, Dr. P. Ziegler and Dr. M. Kleinhans who also recruited patients for this study, but did not meet the criteria for authorship. This study was supported by an unrestricted grant from Pfizer. The company had no influence on the study protocol, data analysis or conclusions.

Conflict of interest

The authors declare that they have no competing interests.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Centre for Interdisciplinary Clinical Immunology, Rheumatology and Auto-inflammatory Diseases (INDIRA), Tuebingen, Germany

    Joerg C Henes, Eva Ziupa, Lothar Kanz & Ina Koetter

  2. Department of Internal Medicine II (Hematology, Oncology, Immunology, Rheumatology, Pulmology), University Hospital, Otfried-Mueller-Str. 10, 72076, Tuebingen, Germany

    Joerg C Henes, Eva Ziupa, Lothar Kanz & Ina Koetter

  3. Rottweil, Germany

    Michael Eisfelder

  4. Department of Dermatology, University Hospital, Tuebingen, Germany

    Annette Adamczyk, Bjoern Knaudt, Felix Jacobs, Stefan Schanz & Gerhard Fierlbeck

  5. Tuebingen, Germany

    Juergen Lux

  6. Department of Interventional and Diagnostic Radiology, University Hospital, Tuebingen, Germany

    Daniel Spira & Marius Horger

Authors
  1. Joerg C Henes
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  2. Eva Ziupa
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  3. Michael Eisfelder
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  6. Felix Jacobs
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  7. Juergen Lux
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  8. Stefan Schanz
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  9. Gerhard Fierlbeck
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  10. Daniel Spira
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  11. Marius Horger
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  12. Lothar Kanz
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  13. Ina Koetter
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Correspondence to Joerg C Henes.

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Henes, J.C., Ziupa, E., Eisfelder, M. et al. High prevalence of psoriatic arthritis in dermatological patients with psoriasis: a cross-sectional study. Rheumatol Int 34, 227–234 (2014). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00296-013-2876-z

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00296-013-2876-z

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