Intensive drug treatment offers hope for sufferers of skin arthritis

Philip Helliwell, who is leading an Arthritis Research UK-funded clinical trial into psoriatic arthritis, yesterday told the prestigious American College of Rheumatology Congress in San Diego that patients benefited from a rapid escalation of medication.

Psoriatic arthritis affects the joints and the skin, causing joint pain and swelling, which lead to joint damage and disability over time.

Although better drugs are now available to treat the condition than in the past, Dr Helliwell and his team believe that earlier, intensive treatment of the condition can reduce joint damage more effectively, preventing disability.

Dr Helliwell, from the Leeds Institute of Rheumatic and Musculoskeletal Medicine, spearheaded a £550,000 national clinical trial based at Chapel Allerton Hospital in Leeds, involving more than 200 patients.

“These finding could have significant implications for the way that this common type of inflammatory arthritis is treated and controlled,” he said.

Prof Alan Silman, medical director of Arthritis Research UK, said a similar approach had already proved successful in treating rheumatoid arthritis. “Research in this disorder has lagged behind rheumatoid arthritis research, although patients have similar levels of disability and reduction in quality of life,” he said.

“They also have to cope with often very severe skin problems and arthritis affecting the spine.”