Hi all. I have a 25 year history of inflammatory arthritis. No antibodies to anything but diagnosed SLE/UCTD anyway. I get frequent attacks of what I think is Enthesitis around my kneecaps with significant swelling, redness and loss of movement and fingers also. Also lots of pleuritic pain ( or is it costochondritis or rib Enthesitis?)
i dont have have any skin lesions at all nor eye problems but Enthesitis is a feature of only a few conditions so I need to know how likely is PsA if I don't have psoriasis. Any thoughts would be gratefully received. Many thanks. Clare
Any family history of psoriasis?
Hi Clare B, all I can say is you do not need dx of Psoriasis to have PSa. You can have all other sx.
No but my father has RA with lots of related eye problems and the most revolting finger and toenails. Presumed to be fungal but unresponsive to creams. I'm on DMARDS but they're not working so I need to be having a discussion with my Rheumy.
How long have you been on the DMARDS Clare?
Its perfectly possible to have PsA without the skin disease - I have it although my mother and my cousins all had/have the skin disease.
Its also possible to have a sero negative infammatory arthritis not related to psoriasis. What does your rheumatologist say...it does sound as he is still working on his diagnosis...These types of conditions can be very tricky to diagnose! Keep asking questions!
Your symptoms and history are very similar to mine. My diagnosis is undifferentiated seronegative spondyloarthropathy which presents primarily as diffuse tendinitis and enthesitis. I also have an underlying genetic connective tissue disorder which has its own set of issues. Everyone is different and apparently your diagnosis and symptoms can change over time.