Sorry I can't help Dawnybee but haven't come across this before. Would the treatment you get be different for PA? What are they doing to confirm the diagnosis?

Julie xx

I'm also a query Psioratic Arthiritis person. I don't have psoriasis though but I do seem to have the first knuckle swelling and ridged nails. I've found however that the consultant is quite happy to disregard all that and just tells me that the treatment is the same anyway.
I get annoyed by that attitude though because i would like to know WHICH type of RA I've got.


Not much to ask surely?

Hiya all, i am confuzzled too , to a degree .

I am sero positive for Rheumatoid Factor and diagnosed with RA 9 months ago (ish) , yet recently i have had Psoriasis on my legs , lower back and Bum :O.
I also have Thick red skin on my elbows which suggest Psoriasis as well.
My Consultant has put RA/PsA on my MTX book.

Most of the reputable sites suggest that to get a diagnosis of PsA one of the criteria is that you have to have a sero-negative RF.
However i have found a few reports that mention that it is "rare" to have a sero +ve RF AND have PsA. This suggests that there are a few people who have a +ve RF but do not have RA but have a diagnosis of PsA.
Yes the drugs to treat both are the same , however the outcomes and long term effects have different possibilities to RA.

With such a long time between appointments i don't think i will get a quick answer.
I have emailed Consultants secretary to ask the Consultant but again i don't think i will get a definitive answer.
Meanwhile in addition to the 7 prescription items i take , i am using Dovonox , and Betnovate creams on the affected skin areas .. and someone on the Arthritis care site has recommended Aqueous Cream for the dry skin issues .
Only £2.40 (500g) from Tesco .

Well it took them 2 years to get the RA diagnosis , lets hope they make the. minds up soon.

Curiously enough in the call to the Consultants sec..i asked where the write up was of my appointment 8 weeks ago , and was told that she was only writing up January's reports at the moment , as they were understaffed (she did state mine would now jump to the top of the queue.)
RA funding severely lacking here :( and thats how i treat the issue ..as a funding one :)


Rich :)

hehe will we still be allowed in the forum if we get diagnosed with PsA ? hehe
I just got leaflets from the Psoriatic Arthritis Charity . PAPAA and the help there is minimal compared to here or elsewhere .
But when you think there are 100 types of Arthritis and associated conditions then no -one can be pigeon holed into one group or another :)
Sun is blazing here , must be summer .. wish i could get out and enjoy it :)
RXX

Puzzled now. When I last saw my consultant the top joint of my right index finger was swollen and very painful. She told me it must be OA because you don't get RA in the top joint (I found that rather a strange idea -what is so different about that joint?) I also have weak nails which tend to split. Clearly I now need to find out more -something else to worry about!
Sue