TUESDAY, May 17 (HealthDay News) -- Add psoriatic arthritis to the diseases and conditions the drug Remicade (infliximab) is approved to treat.

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration has announced its approval for Remicade, made by Johnson & Johnson's Centocor divison, to be used "to reduce the signs and symptoms of active psoriatic arthritis." This type of arthritis demonstrates rashes and skin lesions along with joint inflammation.

According to a news release from Centocor, Remicade is now FDA-approved for treating 9 diseases and conditions, including Crohn's disease, rheumatoid arthritis and ankylosing spondylitis.

The FDA describes infliximab as a monoclonal antibody that works by blocking the overproduction of an immune system protein, an underlying cause of these inflammatory diseases. Remicade was first approved in 1998.

Here's how the FDA described Remicade's effectiveness in treating Crohn's disease in 1998.