RT Journal Article
SR Electronic
T1 Healthcare and burden of disease in psoriatic arthritis. A comparison with rheumatoid arthritis and ankylosing spondylitis.
JF The Journal of Rheumatology
JO J Rheumatol
FD The Journal of Rheumatology
SP 86
OP 90
VO 33
IS 1
A1 Angela Zink
A1 Katja Thiele
A1 Doerte Huscher
A1 Joachim Listing
A1 Joachim Sieper
A1 Andreas Krause
A1 Erika Gromnica-Ihle
A1 Ulrich von Hinueber
A1 Siegfried Wassenberg
A1 Ekkehard Genth
A1 Matthias Schneider
A1 German Collaborative Arthritis Centres
YR 2006
UL http://www.jrheum.org/content/33/1/86.abstract
AB OBJECTIVE: To compare quality of life and treatment among patients with psoriatic arthritis (PsA), rheumatoid arthritis (RA), and ankylosing spondylitis (AS) treated by German rheumatologists. METHODS: Data for outpatients with PsA (n = 1863), RA (n = 9627), or AS (n = 1378) enrolled in the national database of the German collaborative arthritis centers in the year 2002 were analyzed. Among those with PsA, 2 subgroups with predominantly peripheral arthritis (n = 1612) and predominantly axial disease (n = 251) were distinguished. RESULTS: We found a high burden of illness in patients with PsA treated by rheumatologists. Among the 2 subgroups, those with axial PsA had worse outcomes (pain, function) than those with peripheral PsA. However, compared with RA and AS, physician ratings of disease activity and severity were lower in PsA. Concerning access to rheumatology care, there were similarities between AS and axial PsA, with very long disease duration at first visit (mean of about 6 yrs), versus RA and peripheral PsA, with shorter duration (1.6 and 2.5 yrs, respectively). A majority (84%) of patients with PsA were treated with disease modifying antirheumatic drugs. Thirty percent of the patients with PsA currently were under therapy with glucocorticoids, mainly (89%) with a dose < 7.5 mg. CONCLUSION: Patients with PsA seen in rheumatologic care have a burden of illness comparable to that of patients with RA or AS.