Aykac Cebicci Mehtap*
Aim: The aim of the study was to determine the prevalence of inflammatory back pain and sacroiliitis in patients with psoriatic arthritis. Materials and methods: Forty-two patients who diagnosed with psoriatic arthritis in Physical Therapy and Rehabilitation outpatient clinic were included in the study. Patients were questioned for inflammatory back pain by a physiatrist according to the Assessment of SpondyloArthritis International Society (ASAS) criteria. Disease duration, and laboratory parameters of erythrocyte sedimentation rate (ESR) and C-reactive protein (CRP) levels were evaluated for all patients. Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI) of the sacroiliac joints was performed to identify sacroiliac joint involvement. Results: Patients had a mean age of 44.14 ± 10.1 years and mean disease duration of 17.97+8.2 years. Inflammatory back pain was found in 33.3% of the patients. Sacroiliac MR Images demonstrated sacroiliitis in 52.3% of the patients. Of 22 patients with sacroiliitis, 9 had inflammatory low back pain (40.9%). Patients with MRI-detected sacroiliitis showed significantly higher ESR and CRP levels and longer disease duration. Conclusion: With this study, we found that sacroiliac joint involvement was common in patients diagnosed with psoriatic arthritis and this was correlated with longer disease duration and higher CRP levels.