How to cure Psoriatic Arthritis?

Question:
My father has Psoriatic Arthritis, and it hurts to see how much he is suffering and how much range of motion and bone he is losing. He is on these really intense meds and one seems to be helping (he has to inject it, I can find out the name). But my question is.. What is my chance of getting this???

Answer:
I have it and my son just developed it, his age is 31, my grandmother also had it,im off all the good drugs because my liver needs a rest, My current regimen is methotrexate (injected sub-cu), Celebrex, and rounds of pred as needed to stomp down on flares. Somewhat less than 10% (maybe 5-7%). It's also worth noting that some people suffer from a bout of it that disappears as mysteriously as it arrives - that happened to my Dad before I was born and he got through it with aspirin. There is a test that checks to see if you have the genetic marker (I think that is what it does) for PA. I don't remember the name of the test. Could be as high as 30% according to one abstract i saw. You might get some info from our group and pubmed with a few searches, http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?cmd=Retrieve&db=pubmed&... Abstract&list_uids=12890860 Interleukin 1alpha, interleukin 1beta and interleukin 1 receptor gene polymorphisms in psoriatic arthritis. OBJECTIVES: To investigate polymorphisms of interleukin (IL) 1alpha, IL-1beta and IL-1 receptor R1 genes in patients with psoriatic arthritis (PsA), their relationship to the age of onset of psoriasis and the pattern of joint involvement. METHODS: One hundred and forty well-characterized patients with PsA were studied. One hundred healthy controls were recruited from primary care. All were genotyped for single-nucleotide polymorphisms in the genes for IL-1alpha (position -889), IL-1beta (position +3953) and IL-1R1 (position +970). The frequencies of the respective variants were compared between patients and controls and in relation to age of onset of psoriasis, to clinical subsets of the disease and to the presence of erosions. RESULTS: All three polymorphisms were in Hardy-Weinberg equilibrium in both patients and controls. The frequency of IL-1alpha -889 CC homozygotes was significantly increased in PsA patients compared with normal controls [58 vs 40%, odds ratio (OR) 2.06, 95%, confidence interval (CI) 1.22-3.47]. The frequency of the IL-1alpha -889 C allele was significantly increased in PsA patients compared with controls (75 vs 65%, OR 1.65, 95% CI 1.11-2.45). In subset analysis there were no other significant differences in allelic frequencies for the IL-1alpha -889 C/T, IL-1beta +3953 C/T and IL-1R1 +970 C/T polymorphisms. CONCLUSIONS: The IL-1 gene complex may play a role in the development of PsA and/or psoriasis or act as a marker for other genes on chromosome 2q12 to 2q13. Psoriatic arthritis (PsA) is an inflammatory arthritis that may affect as many as 30% of patients with psoriasis (Ps). Genetic factors play an important role in the susceptibility to and the expression of PsA. The objective of this study was to identify whether haplotype sharing among affected sibling pairs of individuals with PsA is increased compared with unaffected sibling pairs. We collected 182 sibling pairs of probands affected with PsA. Extracted genomic DNA was amplified in polymerase chain reactions using locus specific primers homologous to nucleotide sequences for each of the HLA-A, -B, -C, -DR, and -DQ loci. Polymerase chain reaction amplicons were identified by reverse line blot assay using sequence-specific oligonucleotide probes. Evidence for excessive haplotype sharing was examined through Green and Woodrow's test. Results indicate that of the 182 sibling pairs, 46 were affected by PsA, 48 by Ps, and 88 were unaffected. The sharing of 2, 1, and 0 haplotypes for the PsA affected sibling pairs was 14, 27, and 5, respectively (p = 0.04); whereas the haplotype sharing for the Ps affected sibling pairs was 12, 26, and 10, respectively (p = 0.38). In conclusion, the human leukocyte antigen region on chromosome 6p is implicated as one of the candidate regions in PsA. I really really don't think so, since I don't believe the genetic markers have been fully pinned down. They haven't for psoriasis. So I'd be interested in hearing where you got that info. There may be such a thing for other forms of arthritis, of course, and perhaps there was some confusion... It's a good question, because I've seen stats for how many people with psoriasis get PA and % of people with psoriasis with a family history, but not how many of those who got PA had a family history of PA. Did a quick look around places like Medline without results, but it was a quick search. And sorry, but I've better expertise on psoriasis than PA. This is the sort of question it might be good to submit to the NPF for an answer, using the links on their website at http://www.psoriasis.org I was curious so I've already submitted it and will post any answers I get, but you might want to ask yourself as well. I hover over this group on a daily basis. Very rarely contribute because I very rarely have anything to add. On the occasion that I feel I can -- it turns out I am most likely incorrect. I think the test was (HLA??). In my mind it had to do with a genetic marker. But then in my mind I think I'm 18. I will be going back to the doctor in 2 weeks and will ask her about it. What causes psoriatic arthritis? The cause of psoriatic arthritis is currently unknown, and may involve a combination of genetic and immune, as well as environmental factors. In psoriatic arthritis patients with arthritis of the spine, a genetic marker HLA-B27 is frequently found. Blood tests are now available to test for the HLA-B27 gene. Several other genes have also been found to be more common in patients with psoriatic arthritis. Certain changes in the immune system may also be important in the development psoriatic arthritis. For example, the decline in the number of immune cells called helper T cells in AIDS patients may play a role in the development and progression of psoriasis in these patients. The importance of infectious agents and other environmental factors in the cause of psoriatic arthritis is being investigated. Taken from the link http://www.medicinenet.com/psoriatic_arthritis/article.htm The search was quick and dirty and I have no idea how ligitimate the information is but it probably was the HLA test the doctor had me take. Thanks for taking the time to check, especially because as I said, PA isn't where my expertise is.. Anyway that makes sense - the idea of HLA involvement for both psoriais and psoriatic arthritis appears lots of places - and probably is valid. As the link says, that's only one marker that frequently appears for one specific type of arthritis, where I'd thought you meant a more general test for all PA (it's one of the problems in diagnosing PA vs RA and other types of arthropathy - that there IS no test for it, which was why I spoke up). And FWIW, given the likelihood that PA like psoriasis is an umbrella name for a group of related conditions vs a single condition, I would expect as time goes on that there would be more of these specific genetic markers turning up only in subsets of those with the disease. Where the fact that they aren't universal is an indication of those multiple disease paths under one name vs their not being valid. Well I got an answer back from them, which was that they don't have any data on incidence of psoriatic arthritis in those with a family history of either psoriatic arthritis or just psoriasis (figured it was worth asking that as well, while I was at it). They'd be the ones most likely to know about such stats if there was an established standard. Sorry I can't offer more help. FWIW on the anecdotal evidence side, my mother almost certainly had PA, diagnosed as just general 'arthritis' and she also had psoriasis. I've certainly inherited the psoriasis, which I've had some degree of for almost 40 years with no signs so far of the PA and I'm at peak incidence age for that. Of course there are other aspects of my psoriasis that are very different from my mother's too... I'll keep looking to see if I can get you any better info and pass it on if I can Transfer Factor has cleared up my Psoriasis. I had a small patch of psoriasis on my forehead as well as my leg. I tried Transfer Factor in an attempt to get some relief from my debilitating arthritis most likely Psoriatic Arthritis Dr.'s not sure. I took two pills a day for the first 2 weeks than 4 pills a day for the rest of the month. I no longer needed to take Aleeve (I was taking it 3x's a week, afraid of toxicity or would have taken every day). And I noticed that my psoriasis was clearing up. Transfer Factor will boost you immune system and regulate it. I have PA which has been so bad I once for a period had to go downstairs backwards. These days I can't get in the car the 'standard' way nor can I actually get in / out of a bath without problems. Thankful for showers! I'd guess I take enough medications with the occasional injection. As I remember initially I was always told it could get better or worse and once started works independently of P itself! In theory either could completely clear up (wish/dream!) or get worse or just vary!