Psoriatic arthritis happens when your body’s immune system causes inflammation of your joints and surrounding structures that connect to your bones.
About a third of people who have the skin condition psoriasis get psoriatic arthritis. Symptoms may be severe and worsen quickly, or they can be mild and worsen slowly over many years.
The disease usually starts when you're between 30 and 50 years old, but it can happen at any age.
There’s no cure for psoriatic arthritis, but it’s important to diagnose it early so you and your doctor can make a treatment plan to slow the spread of the disease, ease pain, and protect your body. If left untreated, the disease can permanently harm joints and affect your range of motion.
Here are some early warning signs you should look out for.
Joint Pain and Stiffness
Psoriatic arthritis can affect any joint but most commonly affects your fingers and toes. The pain and stiffness can reduce your range of motion, which is how well you can move your joints. Joints are also more likely to be stiff first thing in the morning or after you rest for a while.
Joint Warmth and Swelling
Along with pain, inflammation can make your joints swollen, making them look puffy. After a while, the joints can look deformed. The swelling and eventual deformity can also affect your range of motion. It can make it hard for you to do everyday tasks, such as buttoning a shirt. Your joints can also feel warm to the touch.
Nail Problems
Psoriatic arthritis commonly causes nail changes, including pitting, breakage, or even separation of the nail from the nailbed. You might see your nails crumble or turn yellow, white, or brown.
Lower Back Pain
About 20% of people with psoriatic arthritis get inflammation between the vertebrae in their lower back. This is a condition called spondylitis. It also can cause inflammation of the sacroiliac joint. Some people develop spondylitis in the lower back or neck, but in more severe cases, this can cause joints to fuse together along the whole spine.
Dactylitis
About 40% of people with psoriatic arthritis develop dactylitis. This is when entire fingers or toes swell to look like sausages. This condition can be painful and affect how well you can move your fingers or walk. Signs of dactylitis can help doctors distinguish psoriatic arthritis from rheumatoid arthritis, which may affect more than one joint.
Eye Problems
In some cases, people with psoriatic arthritis also develop an eye condition called uveitis. This can cause:
- Blurry vision
- Floaters, which can be small spots or zig-zag lines that seem to float across your visual field
- Eye pain
- Red eyes
- Sensitivity to light
Psoriatic arthritis could also cause:
- Conjunctivitis (inflammation of the layer that lines the white of your eye and the inside of your eyelid)
- Blepharitis (inflammation of your eyelids)
- Keratoconjunctivitis sicca (dry eyes)
Foot Pain
Psoriatic arthritis can cause pain near your Achilles tendon, located between your calf muscle and heel. It can also cause plantar fasciitis. This can result in severe stabbing pain on the bottom of your foot, right in front of the heel. The pain is often worst in the morning or if you've been sitting for a while. This can make it painful to walk or even stand.
Elbow Pain
The inflammation from psoriatic arthritis can cause a condition called enthesitis. This can occur in your elbow, where a ligament or tendon meets the bone. It can feel a lot like tennis elbow, with pain radiating from the outside of your elbow into your forearm and wrist. Like other joint pain related to psoriatic arthritis, the elbow pain can be worse in the morning and can be quite painful.
Fatigue
Many people with psoriatic arthritis feel tiredness that affects their day-to-day activities. About one-third of those with the disease have severe fatigue. It’s caused by the inflammation that comes with psoriatic arthritis. This can develop into chronic fatigue, a feeling that you are tired all the time.
Skin Rashes
Psoriatic arthritis can cause red skin or discoloration of the skin near the affected joints. Because psoriatic arthritis is linked to a skin condition called psoriasis, you may also have psoriasis patches on your skin. These can be anywhere on your body. The patches can be itchy, red, painful, or silvery.
When to Call Your Doctor About Warning Signs of Psoriatic Arthritis
If you have any of the above symptoms, especially if you have psoriasis or it runs in your family, talk with your doctor or a rheumatologist (a doctor who specializes in arthritis) about what’s going on. If left untreated, you could severely damage the joints. If your symptoms appear suddenly, this is called a flare, and you should be checked to try to reduce the risk of joint damage.
Takeaways
Psoriatic arthritis symptoms can vary widely from person to person. Some people have only mild or occasional symptoms affecting just a few joints. Others have severe pain affecting more joints. If you have any joint pain or any symptoms, such as psoriasis patches, swollen fingers, or lower back pain, see your doctor as soon as you can for a diagnosis.
Early Warning Signs of Psoriatic Arthritis FAQs
What are the first red flags of psoriatic arthritis?
The red flags or most common symptoms of psoriatic arthritis are joint pain and joint stiffness, especially if you have psoriasis.
What are the warning signs of psoriatic arthritis most people are unaware of?
Most people probably think of joint pain and stiffness if they hear about psoriatic arthritis. But they might be unaware that the disease can also cause problems such as blurry vision and swollen fingers that look like sausages.
What are the weird symptoms of psoriatic arthritis?
Some weird symptoms of psoriatic arthritis include dactylitis (fingers and toes so swollen that they look like sausages), changes in the nails, and lower back pain.
What are some of the early signs of psoriatic arthritis in the hands?
Early signs of psoriatic arthritis in your hands could be pain and stiffness in your finger joints and very swollen fingers.
