The Road to a New Horizon in Psoriatic Arthritis.

Abstract

Although arthritis among patients with psoriasis was described in the 19th century, the question of whether there was a specific form of arthritis associated with psoriasis was not raised until the middle of the 20th century. It was only after the seminal work of Moll and Wright that psoriatic arthritis (PsA) was recognized as a distinct entity. There was little interest in studying the disease until the second half of the 20th century. Initially, it was thought to be a mild disease, but subsequent studies over the past 50 years demonstrated that it was a severe disease, occurring much more frequently than first described and leading to progressive joint damage, disability, reduced quality of life and function, and an increased mortality risk. Comorbidities were found to be more common in this patient population, possibly contributing to the poor outcomes. Advances of new therapies and better assessment tools have led to improvement in the outcomes of patients with PsA. However, there are still unmet needs that will require addressing in the next few years to improve the lives of patients with this disease.