Late-onset Psoriatic Arthritis Linked to Greater Disease Severity Than Early-onset Disease

According to a study published in Joint Bone Spine, the clinical characteristics differ between early- and late-onset psoriatic arthritis (PsA), with late-onset disease being associated with greater disease severity.

Researchers aimed to evaluate the association between the age at onset of PsA symptoms with the characteristics and burden of disease in an observational and cross-sectional study. A subgroup of patients with less than 10 years of disease duration from the REGISPONSER and RESPONDIA registries were divided into 2 groups according to age of PsA onset, and the burden of disease was compared.

The early-onset group showed a lower prevalence of men; higher prevalence of enthesitis; and lower scores on loss of function, structural damage in the spine, and whole axial skeleton. Late-onset PsA was independently associated with being male, greater total Bath Ankylosing Spondylitis Radiology Index , higher frequency of arthritis in the upper limbs, and greater loss of function.

“Patients with late-onset PsA showed different clinical characteristics and greater disease severity than those with early-onset PsA,” concluded the study authors.

Reference
Puche-Larrubia MÁ, Ladehesa-Pineda L, López-Montilla MD, et al. Differences between early vs. late-onset of psoriatic arthritis: data from the RESPONDIA and REGISPONSER registries. Joint Bone Spine. Published online March 17, 2023. doi:10.1016/j.jbspin.2023.105563