November 16, 2018

Gout was significantly associated with psoriasis and psoriatic arthritis, and the strength of the association varied with patient age.

Patients with gout may experience a higher prevalence of inflammatory skin conditions including psoriasis and psoriatic arthritis (PsA), according to study results published in the Journal of the European Academy of Dermatology and Venereology.

Researchers analyzed cross-sectional data from the Taiwanese National Health Insurance Research Database. The study cohort consisted of 114,623 patients with gout propensity score-matched (1:1) based on common characteristics such as age, income, sex, and urbanization level. The same number of patients without gout was included as controls. Using logistic regression, researchers estimated the prevalence of PsA, psoriasis, and other comorbid diseases in both patient groups.

After statistical analysis, the investigators found that in the gout group there was a significantly increased prevalence of psoriasis when compared with the control group (1.6% vs 1.1%, respectively; P <.0001). In addition, subgroup analysis comparing both groups showed an increased percentage of patients with gout with comorbid PsA (0.3% vs 0.1%, respectively; P <.0001).

Logistic regression data further revealed significant associations between gout, PsA (adjusted odds ratio [OR], 1.30; 95% CI, 1.20-1.42; P <.0001), and psoriasis (adjusted OR, 2.50; 95% CI, 1.95-3.22; P <.0001). The strongest association was in patients aged 41 to 50 years.

Primary study limitations included the retrospective cross-sectional study design, which limited evaluation of the temporal relationships between each condition.

“Gout is significantly associated with psoriasis and psoriatic arthritis in the Taiwanese population, and the strength of the association varies with the patient’s age. Further studies are warranted to elucidate the molecular mechanisms underlying this association,” the researchers concluded.

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Reference

Hu SC, Lin CL, Tu HP. Association between psoriasis, psoriatic arthritis and gout: A nationwide population-based study [published online October 14, 2018]. J Eur Acad Dermatol Venereol. doi:10.1111/jdv.15290