Protect Against the Flu When You Have Psoriatic Arthritis
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The flu is unpleasant for anyone, but if you have psoriatic arthritis (PsA), an autoimmune disorder and inflammatory form of arthritis, you may be more susceptible to catching a virus and also be at a higher risk for developing complications.
“Psoriatic arthritis does increase the risk of getting the flu and COVID 19 — presumably because the immune system of someone with PsA is impaired because it is preoccupied with attacking itself,” says Stuart Kaplan, MD, chief of rheumatology at Mount Sinai South Nassau Hospital in Oceanside, New York.
Plus, because some people with moderate to severe PsA take medication that suppresses their overactive immune systems — such as disease-modifying anti-rheumatic drugs (DMARDs) and biologics — they’re at higher risk for flu infection, says Eric Ruderman, MD, a professor of medicine (rheumatology) at Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine in Chicago.
People with inflammatory forms of arthritis, according to the Centers for Disease Control, may be more likely to develop complications from the flu, including sinus and ear infections, bronchitis, and pneumonia.
Don’t Skip Your Vaccinations
Despite the potentially serious risks, and the fact that rheumatologists consistently urge those with any rheumatic disease to get an annual flu shot, not everyone who has PsA does.
Research published in Rheumatology International noted that some people with autoimmune rheumatic diseases are concerned about possible side effects, doubt the flu shot will be helpful, or haven’t been made aware that getting an annual flu shot was important. However, these researchers found that during the COVID-19 pandemic, the rate of annual flu vaccination in people with autoimmune rheumatic diseases rose from 76 to just over 83 percent.
While some people with PsA may worry about experiencing a flare after vaccination, these researchers also found that this happened in less than 0.7 percent of cases, consistent with other studies that have shown flu vaccination didn’t affect disease activity in people with autoimmune rheumatic diseases.
And a study published in the Journal of Psoriasis and Psoriatic Arthritis noted that while “psoriasis patients have exhibited a lower likelihood of receiving the influenza vaccine compared with patients with similar chronic diseases, despite recommendations for patients with psoriasis to follow vaccination recommendations,” those who got the flu shot were more likely to get the COVID-19 vaccine.
It’s especially important for people with PsA to stay up-to-date with COVID-19 vaccines because, as research has found, people with rheumatic diseases, including PsA, have a higher mortality rate from COVID-19 infection than the general population does.
