If you’re living with psoriatic arthritis (PsA), you’ve got quite a number of treatment options. Finding the best one for you and your symptoms may take some trial and error.
By working with your healthcare team and learning more about the different types of treatments, you can achieve PsA relief.
Biologics are drugs made from living materials, such as human, animal, or microorganism cells and tissues.
There are currently nine injectable biologic medications available for PsA:
- adalimumab
(Humira) - certolizumab (Cimzia)
- etanercept
(Enbrel) - golimumab
(Simponi) - infliximab
(Remicade) - ustekinumab (Stelara)
- secukinumab (Cosentyx)
- abatacept (Orencia)
- ixekizumab (Taltz)
Biosimilars are medications that have been approved by the
They are called biosimilar because they are so closely related, but not an exact match, to another biologic medication already on the market.
Biosimilars available for PsA:
- Erelzi biosimilar to Enbrel
- Amjevita biosimilar to Humira
- Cyltezo biosimilar to Humira
- Inflectra biosimilar to Remicade
- Renflexis biosimilar to Remicade
The main benefits of biologics are that they can stop inflammation at the cellular level. At the same time, biologics are known to weaken the immune system, which can leave you susceptible to other diseases.
Nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs), corticosteroids, and disease-modifying antirheumatic drugs (DMARDs) are generally taken by mouth, although some NSAIDs can be applied topically.
NSAIDs include:
The main benefits of NSAIDs are that most are available over the counter.
But they aren’t without side effects. NSAIDs can cause stomach irritation and bleeding. They may also increase your risk of a heart attack or stroke.
DMARDs include:
- leflunomide
(Arava) - cyclosporine
(Neoral, Sandimmune) - methotrexate
(Trexall) - sulfasalazine
(Azulfidine) - apremilast
(Otezla)
Biologics are a subset or type of DMARD, so they also work to suppress or reduce inflammation.
Corticosteroids include:
- prednisone
(Rayos)
Also simply known as steroids, these prescription drugs work to reduce inflammation. Again, they are also known to weaken the immune system.
There are benefits and potential side effects for injectable and oral medications. People can experience PsA symptoms differently, so you may need to try a few treatments before you find the one that’s right for you.
Your doctor can make recommendations based on the severity of your symptoms. They may even suggest combing medication types.