Psychologic Morbidity Among Psoriatic Arthritis Patients in Remission or With Low Disease Activity: A Comparison Between Biologic and Conventional Synthetic Disease-Modifying Antirheumatic Drugs

OBJECTIVE The aim of this study was to compare the effect of biologic agents and conventional synthetic disease-modifying antirheumatic drugs (csDMARDs) on the psychologic status of patients with psoriatic arthritis (PsA) in remission or with low disease activity. METHODS This is a case-control study of PsA patients in remission or with low disease activity treated at a single-center combined rheumatologic-dermatologic clinic between 2015 and 2017. Patients were assigned to 2 comparison groups according to their treatment (1) biologic drugs and (2) csDMARDs therapy. Psoriatic arthritis disease activity was evaluated by disease activity score-28. Anxiety, somatization, and depression were evaluated by patient health questionnaires (PHQ): generalized anxiety disorder-7, PHQ-15, and PHQ-9, respectively. Disability was assessed by the health assessment questionnaire disability index (HAQ-DI). RESULTS Thirty PsA patients on biologic treatment (BT) and 14 PsA patients in csDMARDs were enrolled. No significant differences in disease duration and treatment duration between the 2 groups were found. Disease activity score-28 was significantly better in the BT group compared with the csDMARDs group (1.8 ± 0.4 vs 2.1 ± 0.4, respectively, p = 0.028). A nonsignificant tendency toward higher scores in psychologic questionnaires was seen among the non-BT group. Moderate to high correlations between all mental questionnaires and HAQ-DI were found in both groups (0.567 ≤ r ≤ 0.850, p < 0.05). Patients with mental disturbance (generalized anxiety disorder-7/PHQ-15/PHQ-9 ≥ 5) showed significant poorer performance in their HAQ-DI in comparison with patient without physiological comorbidities in both groups. CONCLUSIONS Tight disease control in PsA patients, achieved with BT, may offer an improvement in psychological outcomes in addition to relieving clinical symptoms.