The National Psoriasis Foundation has relaunched its psoriatic arthritis program to aggressively address the disparities in diagnosis and treatment for psoriatic arthritis patients in the United States.
"There are significantly fewer resources for people with psoriatic arthritis than for those with rheumatoid arthritis," despite similar symptoms and prevalence, according to a press release issued by the foundation June 26.
The National Psoriasis Foundation PsA Project states four goals: Reduce the time to diagnosis of PsA; improve clinician understanding of PsA symptoms, treatment options, and the effect of the disease on quality of life; reduce barriers to treatment; and help patients better manage their disease.
Specifically, the foundation aims to reduce from 4 years to 1 year the average time to diagnosis for PsA patients, reduce from 50% to 30% the percentage of patients who report PsA is a problem in their everyday lives; and double the number of PsA patients receiving proper treatment, the number of National Institutes of Health scientists studying psoriatic disease, and the health resources available for PsA patients.