Psoriatic Arthritis Screening and Evaluation (PASE) questionnaire and the role of dermatologists: a report from the GRAPPA 2009 annual meeting

Psoriatic arthritis (PsA) is an inflammatory arthritis associated with psoriasis, often with a variable course that ranges from slowly progressive to rapidly destructive. Delay in diagnosis and treatment may lead to an irreversible erosive arthropathy, leading further to physical disability and deformity. The Psoriatic Arthritis Screening and Evaluation (PASE) tool was developed and validated to help dermatologists screen more effectively for PsA; recently, it has been undergoing further validation. An update on the continuing experience with the PASE questionnaire, along with a discussion of why dermatologists have a critical role in screening for PsA, was a major focus of the Group for Research and Assessment of Psoriasis and Psoriatic Arthritis (GRAPPA) annual meeting at Stockholm, Sweden, in June 2009.