What Is Psoriatic Arthritis?

When it comes to arthritis there are over 100 different types and related conditions. In Ireland today 915, 000 people are living with arthritis. Each type is different from the last. The causes and treatment options available vary from one type of arthritis to another.

In the past, we have spoken about Rheumatoid Arthritis and Osteoarthritis. Today we would like to dive deeper into Psoriatic Arthritis. What is it, its causes, symptoms, and possible treatment options.

What Is Psoriatic Arthritis (PsA)?

Psoriatic arthritis is actually the reason we are here with you today. Our founder and creator, Andy was diagnosed with Psoriatic arthritis which made making his morning coffee painful and near impossible. It is because of this that he set out on designing a kettle that would no longer cause him pain and bring more independence to the kitchen. From this, our Uccello Kettle was born.

Psoriatic arthritis is a form of arthritis that affects some people who have psoriasis. Of course, if you have psoriasis you won’t necessarily get psoriatic arthritis and vice versa. Almost 1 in 3 people with psoriasis also have psoriatic arthritis.

What Are The Causes?

Similar to Rheumatoid Arthritis, psoriatic arthritis occurs when your own body’s immune system starts to attack healthy cells and tissues. There is then an abnormal immune response in your body that causes inflammation in your joints as well as overproduction of skin cells.

To this day, doctors don’t know for sure what causes it. They currently believe that it:

Runs in the family: Many people with psoriatic arthritis have a parent or sibling with the same disease.
Having Psoriasis: It is not a dead cert that you can get it because you have psoriasis but it is a contributing factor.
Your Age: Just like Rheumatoid Arthritis you can get PsA at any age. However, the average age people are being diagnosed with it is between 30 -50 years of age.

What Are The Symptoms?

Symptoms for PsA can vary from person to person and they can go from mild to severe. There are times that your symptoms will disappear completely and other times they may worsen. The symptoms you have can depend on the type of PsA you have:

General symptoms can include:

Stiffness in the morning
Swollen, tender joints on one or both sides of your body
Painful muscles and tendons
Swollen fingers and toes
Scaly skin patches – this could get worse when the joint pain flares up
Fatigue
nail pitting
flaky scalp
Your nail separating from your nail beds
eye redness
eye pain
Rash on the skin

Treatment Options Available:

When it comes to treatments there are a number of options open to you:

Topical Treatments:

Here you have your creams, lotions, ointments, and gels that can help relieve the itchy rash you may have. These treatments are over the counter and some will need a prescription.

Steroids:

Steroid-based medications can help reduce inflammation. These are generally injected into the affected areas.

Immunosuppressants:

Medication that can help calm an overactive immune response. Immunosuppressants are not the first port of call for this as they weaken your overall immune response and can possibly increase your risk for infections.