Clinical and laboratory manifestations of elderly onset psoriatic arthritis: a comparison with younger onset disease

OBJECTIVE Although the influence of age on clinical and laboratory features has been widely demonstrated in many arthropathies, studies on elderly onset (> 60 years) psoriatic arthritis (EOPsA) are rare. This study compares manifestations at onset and two year outcome of EOPsA with those of younger onset PsA (YOPsA). PATIENTS AND METHODS Sixty six consecutive PsA patients with disease duration < 1 year, 16 EOPsA (>60 years) and 50 YOPsA (⩽60 years) were admitted to a prospective study. Clinical, laboratory, and radiographic assessment were carried out at admission and after two years. HLA class I and bone scintigraphy were also recorded. In 10 patients with EOPsA and 24 with YOPsA it was possible to obtain synovial fluid, which was subsequently analysed for local inflammatory indices, including interleukin (IL) 1β, IL6, and IL8. RESULTS Presenting manifestations of EOPsA differed from YOPsA in number of active joints (mean (SD)) (12.2 (6.3) v 6.7 (4.6), p