Japanese version of the early psoriatic arthritis screening questionnaire (EARP).

The early psoriatic arthritis screening questionnaire (EARP) is a simple and fast method for the identification of arthritis in patients with psoriasis. We established the Japanese version of the EARP (J-EARP) questionnaire, which includes 10 items with two choices for each. This study aimed to evaluate the utility of the J-EARP questionnaire. A total of 90 psoriasis patients, 19 psoriatic arthritis (PsA) patients and 71 psoriasis patients without joint involvement, were administered the J-EARP questionnaire. The diagnostic accuracy of the J-EARP questionnaire for the diagnosis of PsA and early-stage PsA was compared by receiver-operator curve (ROC) analysis. The J-EARP questionnaire showed similar ROC characteristics to those of the original version of the EARP (specificity 97.2% and 91.6% and sensitivity 97.2% and 85.2%, respectively) in PsA patients using the cut-off value of 3 for the J-EARP questionnaire, which was the same as that used for the original EARP questionnaire. The scores of the J-EARP questionnaire in early-stage PsA patients (<1 year from onset) were significantly higher than in those of psoriasis patients, but not lower than in those of later stage (≥1 year from onset) PsA patients. The J-EARP questionnaire is simple and fast to administer and has been proven to be robust for the identification of PsA. The J-EARP questionnaire is a useful diagnostic tool for early-stage PsA patients.

Analysis of clinical, radiological and laboratory variables in psoriatic arthritis with 25 Japanese patients.

Psoriatic arthritis (PsA) has many clinical and radiological manifestations but lacks a specific laboratory marker. The aim of the present study was to identify noteworthy features in PsA patients on routine clinical examinations. The subjects were 25 PsA patients who were classified based on the Classification of Psoriatic Arthritis (CASPAR) criteria. The clinical and radiological findings and laboratory parameters were analyzed by retrospective chart review. On clinical examination, dactylitis was present in 13 (52%) of 25 patients, swollen and/or tender Achilles tendons were present in nine (36%), and sacroiliitis was present in eight (32%). Of the radiological features, juxta-articular new bone formation (JANF) was seen in 12 (48%), extra-articular new bone formation was seen in nine (36%) and sacroiliitis was seen in six (24%). Dactylitis and JANF had the highest prevalence rates. The Psoriasis Area and Severity Index score, swollen and/or tender joint count, erythrocyte sedimentation rate, C-reactive protein, and matrix metalloproteinase-3 were higher in patients with sacroiliitis than in those without sacroiliitis (P < 0.05). Dactylitis, JANF and sacroiliitis may be noteworthy manifestations in Japanese patients with PsA.

Antibodies against cyclic citrullinated peptide in Japanese psoriatic arthritis patients.

Anti-cyclic citrullinated peptide antibodies (anti-CCP) are highly considered to indicate disease severity and be predictive markers in rheumatoid arthritis (RA). RA patients who are positive for anti-CCP tend to progress more frequently to joint deformity and functionally deteriorate more than negative patients. A study concerning the presence of anti-CCP in Japanese patients with psoriatic arthritis (PsA) has been published. Our aim was to clarify that anti-CCP could be a potentially useful marker in PsA patients. We herein describe a PsA patient with presence of anti-CCP. We examined anti-CCP in 15 patients with PsA, and compared with 18 controls who had other types of psoriasis. Three PsA patients were positive for anti-CCP, but no controls showed positive. The anti-CCP-positive patients had higher counts of radiographic erosion, higher prevalence rates of polyarticular disease, use of disease-modifying anti-rheumatic drugs, and the human leukocyte antigen DRB1*04 shared epitope than negative patients. Our study demonstrated that anti-CCP was potentially both predictive and a severity marker of joint involvement in PsA, the same as in RA.