Study Shows Psoriatic Arthritis Impacts Women More Than Men

Researcher Comments

Lead author of the study, Ana-Maria Orbai, MD, MHS, assistant professor of medicine and director of the Psoriatic Arthritis Program, Johns Hopkins Arthritis Center, Division of Rheumatology, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, says these results provide a better understanding of the sex differences in patients with PsA. 

Indicating that previous data show that women have worse PsA scores than men, she said the current study provides more relevant data other than disease activity on the impact of PsA on patients, particularly women. 

“I think these findings complete our knowledge in a more robust way, because prior to this we just had the observation [that women did more poorly than men] but we didn’t necessarily know the significant predictors associated with potentially adjustable risk factors,” Dr. Orbai says.

“What we are learning from this study is the need to consider life impact in the treatment of psoriatic arthritis,” she says, adding that life impact needs to be incorporated into the treat-to-target strategy to address it separately from disease activity.

Mary Beth Nierengarten is a freelance medical journalist based in Minneapolis.

Reference

1. Orbai AM, Perin J, Gorlier C, et al. Determinants of patient-reported psoriatic arthritis impact of disease: An analysis of the association with sex in 458 patients from 14 countries. Arthritis Care Res (Hoboken). 2020 Dec;72(12):1772–1779.