Clinical tools and screening: Psoriatic arthritis

The Psoriasis Epidemiology Screening Tool (PEST) is a five‑question self‑completed screening questionnaire for psoriatic arthritis in people with psoriasis. A score of 3 or more suggests that referral to rheumatology should be considered; NICE recommends annual assessment for PsA in people with psoriasis. Further reading.

The Psoriatic Arthritis Impact of Disease (PsAID) questionnaires (PsAID‑12 and PsAID‑9) are patient‑reported outcome measures specifically developed to capture the impact of PsA on people’s lives. Further reading.

15‑item questionnaire assessing symptoms and functional impact to help identify possible PsA in people with psoriasis.

Screening questionnaire for PsA that can be used in psoriasis and general populations; covers joint, spine and enthesitis symptoms.pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih+2

Questionnaire focused on detecting early inflammatory arthritis in people with psoriasis, helping prompt timely referral.

Set of criteria combining joint findings, psoriasis features and radiology to classify a patient as having PsA (used mainly in research but informs clinical thinking).

Composite score focused on peripheral joint activity (tender/swollen joints, pain, patient global assessment, CRP/ESR) to track overall PsA disease activity.

More comprehensive composite index including joints, enthesitis, dactylitis, spine involvement, patient and physician global assessments and quality‑of‑life elements.

Scores five domains of psoriatic disease (joints, skin, enthesitis, dactylitis, spine) to reflect how active PsA is across different tissues.

Treat‑to‑target concept and criteria set used to judge whether a person’s PsA is “well‑controlled” across multiple domains (joints, skin, function, pain, quality of life).

Assesses dactylitis (“sausage digits”) by measuring swelling and tenderness of affected fingers/toes.

Tools originally developed for axial spondyloarthritis; used to assess spinal/axial involvement (back pain, stiffness, fatigue) in PsA. Further reading.