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Sunday, 22 August 2010

Psoriatic arthritis (Part 2): complications and treatment options

Complications:
Psoriatic arthritis can be exhausting, painful and may make it difficult to meet their daily activities. Although untreated, psoriatic arthritis can cause joint erosion. Physicians may find difficult to establish who will aggravate the disease and who do not. Generally, people diagnosed with psoriatic arthritis at a young age, female or those with sudden pain, are more prone to developing severe forms.

Treatment options:
There is still no cure for this disease, ofter are used drugs and rarely surgery, the doctor tries to control inflammation, thereby preventing pain and disability.

The information below are purely informative and do not replace a professional consultation. Do not administer medication how you like, but consult with your doctor!

Of the drugs commonly used to treat psoriatic arthritis include:

1. Nonsteroidale inflammatory drugs. Medicines such as aspirin and ibuprofen can help control pain, inflammation and stiffness that you can feel the morning. But these drugs can affect the stomach and intestines and prolonged use can cause ulcers and gastrointestinal bleeding. They can worsen skin problems, but may be a good choice for patients with mild arthritis pain.

2. Corticosteroids. If you have a mild form of psoriatic arthritis, your doctor may recommend corticosteroids to control pain that sometimes occurs in the joints.

3. Antirheumatic drugs that modify the disease. Not only reduces pain and inflammation, but these drugs help to limit erosion of joints. But these drugs have a slow action and results are seen in a few weeks or months. For this reason your doctor may prescribe a painkill medication (aspirin).

4. TNF-alpha inhibitors. Your doctor may recommend inhibitors TNF-alpha (tumor necrosis factor) if you have a severe form of psoriatic arthritis. These drugs block an inflammation-caused by protein in certain types of arthritis. These include adalimumab (Humira), infliximab (Remicade) and etanercept (Enbrel). TNF-alpha inhibitors help relieve the symptoms of psoriasis. But these drugs shows significant side effects.

5. Surgery. Although rarely resorting to surgery, your doctor may recommend certain interventions, when other treatments do not work.

Home care guide. Here are some tips that may help you:

1. Have a healthy weight. A proper weight will reduce pain and will increase the amount of energy and mobility.

2. Exercise performed regularly. Physical activity is important for patients with psoriatic arthritis. Exercise can alleviate many of the symptoms of the disease (pain, fatigue).

3. Use appropriate techniques. Changing the methods by which you accomplish daily activities improve your quality of life.

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