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Johns Hopkins University is currently recruiting approximately 200 patients for an observational study of how well treatment goals are met in psoriatic arthritis.

Psoriatic arthritis is an autoimmune disease that occurs in one in three people who have already been diagnosed with psoriasis. Psoriasis is a common skin condition that speeds up the life cycle of skin cells, causing cells to build up rapidly on the surface of the skin.

These extra skin cells form scales and red patches that are itchy and sometimes painful. Psoriasis is a chronic disease that often comes and goes but can’t be cured.

Psoriatic arthritis, a complication of psoriasis, can cause inflammation of the joints, tendons and ligaments, as well as swelling of an entire finger or toe (known as sausage digits), and spondyloarthritis (spinal inflammation).

Because the condition affects both the skin and the musculoskeletal system and can cause uncomfortable, painful symptoms, it can have a significant negative impact on a patient’s life.

Medications that are traditionally used to treat psoriatic arthritis can have variable effects, with some being more effective for skin issues and others more effective for the joints.

Because of this, the care and treatment of psoriatic arthritis is complex. Doctors must balance the disease with the risks and benefits of medication, as well as the patient’s priorities.

From a patient’s perspective       

The chief goal of treatment is remission of the disease or reduced disease activity. In previous studies, researchers have reported that physicians tend to overestimate remission and lowered disease activity in patients with psoriatic arthritis. In addition, patients and physicians frequently are not of the same mind when it comes to what signifies remission or minimal disease.

In the Hopkins study, the investigators want to identify the predictors of successful treatment from a patient’s perspective on a range of measures, including psoriasis, arthritis and inflammation, as well as patient-reported outcomes and laboratory results from tests that are routinely collected in the care of the disease.

Researchers also want to find a way to quantify treatment success from a patient’s perspective, and to create a way to measure health-related quality of life that corresponds to treatment success from the patient’s (not the doctor’s) perspective.

Investigators hope that this research will enable them to better predict the success of treatment from a patient’s perspective, which will then be applied to goals of care for psoriatic arthritis.

The study is looking for a wide range of participants, from ages 18 to 95, who have been diagnosed with psoriatic arthritis. They must be patients at the Johns Hopkins Arthritis Center and/or the Johns Hopkins Psoriatic Arthritis Clinical Program.

Study participants will use a touch screen computer to record symptoms and progress, starting three to four months after enrolling in the year-long study. Patients will be followed every three to four months for regular rheumatologic care.

To learn more about the study, contact Michelle K. Jones at (410) 550-9674 or mrkjones@jhmi.edu

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