Table of ContentsView AllTable of ContentsWhat Is Psoriatic Arthritis?Psoriasis and ComorbiditiesPsoriatic Arthritis and Kidney DiseaseSymptomsDiagnosis and TreatmentPreventionSummaryFrequently Asked Questions
Table of ContentsView All
View All
Table of Contents
What Is Psoriatic Arthritis?
Psoriasis and Comorbidities
Psoriatic Arthritis and Kidney Disease
Symptoms
Diagnosis and Treatment
Prevention
Summary
Frequently Asked Questions
In this article, we’ll discuss the connection between psoriatic arthritis and kidney disease, as well as the causes, prevention, and treatment methods.
Verywell / Jessica Olah
Psoriatic arthritis is an inflammatorytype of arthritisthat develops in some people withpsoriasis, an autoimmune disease that causes itchy, scaly plaques on the skin. Psoriasis affects 74 million adults in the United States, and 30% of patients diagnosed with psoriasis will develop psoriatic arthritis.
Clinical Features of Psoriatic Arthritis
Psoriasis and Your Risk for Other Conditions
As an autoimmune inflammatory condition, psoriasis shares a link with other systemic conditions likediabetes, metabolic syndrome, heart disease, stroke, and high blood pressure based on a shared underlying cause.
Comorbidities in Psoriasis
The Link Between Psoriatic Arthritis and Kidney Disease
Markers of normal kidney functioning include:
Normally, the kidneys filter out these substances from the blood to maintain levels within a healthy range.
When the kidneys don’t function properly, serum creatinine, urea, and phosphate will stay in the blood and cause higher-than-normal levels, which indicate kidney disease or malfunctioning. Elevated levels of protein in the blood are also commonly seen when the kidneys are not functioning properly.
The level of serum creatinine in your blood as well as your age, gender, and race all factor in to yourglomerular filtration rate, which is another marker of healthy kidney functioning. If serum creatinine levels are elevated, your glomerular filtration rate will be lower since the kidneys are not effectively filtering out creatinine from the blood.
A 2017 epidemiological study examined markers of kidney function among patients with psoriatic arthritis, patients with psoriasis, and healthy control subjects. This study revealed that levels of serum creatinine, urea, and phosphate were all elevated in patients with psoriasis compared to healthy subjects, but levels were highest among the patients with psoriatic arthritis.
Additionally, the glomerular filtration rate was measured in all participants of the study and was found to be lowest among the patients with psoriatic arthritis. It was also lower in patients with psoriasis compared to the average rate of healthy subjects.
Proteinuria, or elevated levels of protein in the blood, was also found in 96.7% of patients with psoriatic arthritis but only in 10% of patients with psoriasis.Kidney biopsies were taken of the patients with proteinuria and most revealed membranous glomerulonephritis, which is inflammation of the glomeruli, or small capillaries, of the kidneys that filter the blood. Glomerulonephritis is one of the three major causes of chronic kidney disease.
Symptoms of Psoriatic Arthritis and Kidney Disease
The widespread inflammation that affects the skin and joints in psoriatic arthritis can also extend to other areas of the body, causing:
Other systemic symptoms can include chronicfatigue, digestive symptoms, such as abdominal pain, bloating, constipation, and diarrhea, and organ damage from inflammation of the heart, lungs, or kidneys.
Understanding Unusual Urine Color, Odor, or Appearance
A combination of a physical exam, a review of your medical history, your symptoms, andX-rayimaging will be used to confirm a diagnosis of psoriatic arthritis and identify the affected joints.
Blood tests that examine yourerythrocyte sedimentation rate(ESR) and levels ofC-reactive proteincan help confirm a diagnosis of psoriatic arthritis since these markers are typically elevated with this condition. Blood tests are also crucial for measuring your levels of serum creatinine, urea, phosphate, and glomerular filtration rate to diagnose kidney disease.
A urinalysis to examine the levels of protein in a sample of your urine can also help your doctor diagnose kidney disease. If blood work and urinalysis come back abnormal, an ultrasound or computed tomography (CT) scan may be performed to examine the appearance of your kidneys to check for signs of damage.
Prescription medication, such asdisease-modifying antirheumatic drugs(DMARDs) like methotrexate and biologics like TNF-inhibitors like etanercept, are often prescribed to decrease inflammation in autoimmune conditions like psoriasis and psoriatic arthritis. These medications help reduce numbers of inflammatory T-cells and reduce levels of inflammatory cytokines, which can also decrease symptoms of kidney disease.
Ways to Prevent Damage to Your Kidneys
To help keep your kidneys healthy, proper management of any underlying conditions decreases your risk of developing kidney disease.
Healthy lifestyle habits can also help you manage these conditions and reduce inflammation throughout the body to prevent kidney damage. Healthy lifestyle habits include:
Research has shown that people with psoriatic arthritis may be more likely to have glomerulonephritis, which is inflammation of the small capillaries of the kidneys that filter the blood. This condition is linked to chronic kidney disease.
Psoriatic arthritis and kidney disease can cause inflammation in other parts of the body besides the skin, joints, and kidneys. These include the heart, brain, pancreas, liver, lungs, and digestive organs.
Psoriatic arthritis has been linked to diabetes, metabolic syndrome, heart disease, stroke, and high blood pressure.
6 SourcesVerywell Health uses only high-quality sources, including peer-reviewed studies, to support the facts within our articles. Read oureditorial processto learn more about how we fact-check and keep our content accurate, reliable, and trustworthy.Khan A, Haider I, Ayub M, Humayun M.Psoriatic Arthritis Is an Indicator of Significant Renal Damage in Patients with Psoriasis: An Observational and Epidemiological Study.Int J Inflam. 2017;2017:5217687. doi:10.1155/2017/5217687Dhir V, Aggarwal A.Psoriatic arthritis: a critical review.Clin Rev Allergy Immunol.2013;44(2):141-148. doi:10.1007/s12016-012-8302-6Grinnell-Merrick LL, Lydon EJ, Mixon AM, Saalfeld W.Evaluating Inflammatory Versus Mechanical Back Pain in Individuals with Psoriatic Arthritis: A Review of the Literature.Rheumatol Ther. 2020;7(4):667-684. doi:10.1007/s40744-020-00234-3National Kidney Foundation.10 Signs You May Have Kidney Disease.Lee E, Han JH, Bang CH, Yoo SA, Han KD, Kim HN, Park YM, Lee JY, Lee JH.Risk of End-Stage Renal Disease in Psoriatic Patients: Real-World Data from a Nationwide Population-Based Cohort Study.Sci Rep. 2019 Nov 12;9(1):16581. doi:10.1038/s41598-019-53017-4National Institutes of Health.Preventing Chronic Kidney Disease.
6 Sources
Verywell Health uses only high-quality sources, including peer-reviewed studies, to support the facts within our articles. Read oureditorial processto learn more about how we fact-check and keep our content accurate, reliable, and trustworthy.Khan A, Haider I, Ayub M, Humayun M.Psoriatic Arthritis Is an Indicator of Significant Renal Damage in Patients with Psoriasis: An Observational and Epidemiological Study.Int J Inflam. 2017;2017:5217687. doi:10.1155/2017/5217687Dhir V, Aggarwal A.Psoriatic arthritis: a critical review.Clin Rev Allergy Immunol.2013;44(2):141-148. doi:10.1007/s12016-012-8302-6Grinnell-Merrick LL, Lydon EJ, Mixon AM, Saalfeld W.Evaluating Inflammatory Versus Mechanical Back Pain in Individuals with Psoriatic Arthritis: A Review of the Literature.Rheumatol Ther. 2020;7(4):667-684. doi:10.1007/s40744-020-00234-3National Kidney Foundation.10 Signs You May Have Kidney Disease.Lee E, Han JH, Bang CH, Yoo SA, Han KD, Kim HN, Park YM, Lee JY, Lee JH.Risk of End-Stage Renal Disease in Psoriatic Patients: Real-World Data from a Nationwide Population-Based Cohort Study.Sci Rep. 2019 Nov 12;9(1):16581. doi:10.1038/s41598-019-53017-4National Institutes of Health.Preventing Chronic Kidney Disease.
Verywell Health uses only high-quality sources, including peer-reviewed studies, to support the facts within our articles. Read oureditorial processto learn more about how we fact-check and keep our content accurate, reliable, and trustworthy.
Khan A, Haider I, Ayub M, Humayun M.Psoriatic Arthritis Is an Indicator of Significant Renal Damage in Patients with Psoriasis: An Observational and Epidemiological Study.Int J Inflam. 2017;2017:5217687. doi:10.1155/2017/5217687Dhir V, Aggarwal A.Psoriatic arthritis: a critical review.Clin Rev Allergy Immunol.2013;44(2):141-148. doi:10.1007/s12016-012-8302-6Grinnell-Merrick LL, Lydon EJ, Mixon AM, Saalfeld W.Evaluating Inflammatory Versus Mechanical Back Pain in Individuals with Psoriatic Arthritis: A Review of the Literature.Rheumatol Ther. 2020;7(4):667-684. doi:10.1007/s40744-020-00234-3National Kidney Foundation.10 Signs You May Have Kidney Disease.Lee E, Han JH, Bang CH, Yoo SA, Han KD, Kim HN, Park YM, Lee JY, Lee JH.Risk of End-Stage Renal Disease in Psoriatic Patients: Real-World Data from a Nationwide Population-Based Cohort Study.Sci Rep. 2019 Nov 12;9(1):16581. doi:10.1038/s41598-019-53017-4National Institutes of Health.Preventing Chronic Kidney Disease.
Khan A, Haider I, Ayub M, Humayun M.Psoriatic Arthritis Is an Indicator of Significant Renal Damage in Patients with Psoriasis: An Observational and Epidemiological Study.Int J Inflam. 2017;2017:5217687. doi:10.1155/2017/5217687
Dhir V, Aggarwal A.Psoriatic arthritis: a critical review.Clin Rev Allergy Immunol.2013;44(2):141-148. doi:10.1007/s12016-012-8302-6
Grinnell-Merrick LL, Lydon EJ, Mixon AM, Saalfeld W.Evaluating Inflammatory Versus Mechanical Back Pain in Individuals with Psoriatic Arthritis: A Review of the Literature.Rheumatol Ther. 2020;7(4):667-684. doi:10.1007/s40744-020-00234-3
National Kidney Foundation.10 Signs You May Have Kidney Disease.
Lee E, Han JH, Bang CH, Yoo SA, Han KD, Kim HN, Park YM, Lee JY, Lee JH.Risk of End-Stage Renal Disease in Psoriatic Patients: Real-World Data from a Nationwide Population-Based Cohort Study.Sci Rep. 2019 Nov 12;9(1):16581. doi:10.1038/s41598-019-53017-4
National Institutes of Health.Preventing Chronic Kidney Disease.
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