Structural Foot Characteristics in People With Midfoot Osteoarthritis: Cross-Sectional Findings From the Clinical Assessment Study of the Foot.

OBJECTIVE: This study compared radiographic measures of foot structure between people with and without symptomatic radiographic midfoot osteoarthritis (OA). METHODS: This was a cross-sectional study of adults aged 50 years and older registered with four UK general practices who reported foot pain in the past year. Bilateral weightbearing dorsoplantar and lateral radiographs were obtained. Symptomatic radiographic midfoot OA was defined as midfoot pain in the last 4 weeks, combined with radiographic OA in one or more midfoot joints (first cuneometatarsal, second cuneometatarsal, navicular-first cuneiform, and talonavicular). Midfoot OA cases were matched 1:1 for sex and age to controls with a 5-year age tolerance. Eleven radiographic measures were extracted and compared between the groups using independent sample t-tests and effect sizes (Cohen's d). RESULTS: We identified 63 midfoot OA cases (mean ± SD age was 66.8 ± 8.0 years, with 32 male and 31 female participants) and matched these to 63 controls (mean ± SD age was 65.9 ± 7.8 years). There were no differences in metatarsal lengths between the groups. However, those with midfoot OA had a higher calcaneal-first metatarsal angle (d = 0.43, small effect size, P = 0.018) and lower calcaneal inclination angle (d = 0.46, small effect size, P = 0.011) compared with controls. CONCLUSIONS: People with midfoot OA have a flatter foot posture compared with controls. Although caution is required when inferring causation from cross-sectional data, these findings are consistent with a pathomechanical pathway linking foot structure to the development of midfoot OA. Prospective studies are required to determine the temporal relationships between foot structure, function, and the development of this common and disabling condition.

Joint microwave radiometry for inflammatory arthritis assessment.

OBJECTIVES: Increased in-depth joint temperature measured by the rapid, easy-to-perform microwave radiometry (MWR) method may reflect inflammation, even in the absence of clinical signs. We hypothesized that MWR is useful for RA and spondyloarthritis patients' assessment. METHODS: Clinical examination, joint ultrasound and/or MRI and MWR were performed in two independent patient-control cohorts (n = 243). RESULTS: Among single RA joints MWR performed best in the knee using ultrasound as reference, with 75% sensitivity-73% specificity for grey-scale synovitis score ⩾2, and 80% sensitivity-82% specificity for power Doppler positivity. A stronger agreement was evident between increased knee relative temperature (Δt) and power Doppler positivity (82%) than with clinical examination (76%). In a different patient cohort with painful knees, a knee Δt ⩽0.2 predicted power Doppler positivity with 100% positive and negative predictive values. A thermo-score summing 10 Δt values of three large and seven small RA joints (elbow, knee, ankle, wrist, four hand and two foot joints of the clinically dominant arm or hand and leg or foot) correlated with ultrasound scores of synovitis/tenosynovitis (all P < 0.001) and the 28-joint Disease Activity Score (DAS28) (P = 0.004). The agreement of the thermo-score with ultrasound-defined joint inflammation (82%) was stronger than with DAS28 (64%). The thermo-score improved significantly after 90 days of treatment in patients with active RA at baseline (P = 0.004). Using MRI as reference, Δt of sacroiliac joints could discriminate between spondyloarthritis patients with or without sacroiliitis with 78% sensitivity-74% specificity. CONCLUSION: In-depth increased MWR-derived joint temperature reflects both subclinical and clinically overt inflammation and may serve as a biomarker in arthritis.

Ultrasound as a Diagnostic Tool in the Assessment of Lisfranc Joint Injuries.

OBJECTIVES: Ligamentous Lisfranc injuries are frequently overlooked because of subtle clinical presentations and diagnostic difficulties. The dorsal Lisfranc ligament (DLL) is easily visualized with ultrasound (US), which can provide quick, cost-effective diagnoses of disorders but is not considered standard clinical practice. This study sought to compare DLL measurement accuracy between US and cadaveric dissection. METHODS: Ultrasound images of 22 embalmed cadaveric feet were obtained with an M-Turbo US machine and a 6-13-MHz linear array (FUJIFILM SonoSite, Inc, Bothell, WA). Images were measured in the US unit and again with ImageJ software (National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, MD). Specimens were dissected, and DLL morphologic characteristics were recorded. RESULTS: Twenty-two specimens were scanned, however 4 were excluded, leaving a sample of 11 male and 7 female cadaveric specimens (mean age ± SD, 80.3 ± 14.03 years). The DLL length differences between SonoSite (8.39 ± 1.27 mm) and ImageJ (8.25 ± 1.84 mm) were not significant (P > .05). Both US DLL measurements significantly differed from the gross dissection measurement (10.8 ± 1.85 mm; P < .001). The morphologic characteristics of the DLL at dissection were consistent. Overall, 70% to 80% of the ligament length was represented by US compared to dissection. The dorsal joint space did not differ significantly between SonoSite (2.19 ± 0.49 mm) and ImageJ (2.05 ± 0.52; P > .05). Both US measurements were also significantly larger than dissection measurements (1.04 ± 0.24; P < .001). Intraclass correlation coefficients indicated good reliability for the DLL length (0.835) and moderate reliability for the dorsal joint space (0.714). CONCLUSIONS: The DLL is underrepresented but easily distinguished by US, demonstrating its utility in Lisfranc injury diagnosis. Thus, we propose a 4-component assessment involving US, which may provide more rapid, cost-effective diagnoses of subtle Lisfranc injuries.

Flexible fixation for ligamentous lisfranc injuries.

Lisfranc injuries require anatomic reduction and stabilization of the tarsometatarsal joints. We describe a novel technique that provides flexible fixation that is simple, cost-effective and that may offer certain advantages over more traditional techniques.

Quantitative Assessment of the Obliquity of the First Metatarsal-Medial Cuneiform Articulation.

The so-called obliquity of the first metatarsal-medial cuneiform articulation has been described as an atavistic trait of human foot morphology, and it is commonly proposed as a relative risk factor for development of the hallux abductovalgus (HAV) deformity. The objectives of this investigation were to 1) provide descriptive normative radiographic data on a series of first metatarsal-medial cuneiform articulations and 2) correlate these findings to other common radiographic parameters used to define the HAV deformity. We measured radiographic parameters including the first intermetatarsal angle, hallux abductus angle, tibial sesamoid position, Engel's angle, and 2 measures of obliquity in the transverse and sagittal planes on a consecutive series of 136 weightbearing foot radiographic projections from subjects without a history of foot/ankle surgery or fracture/dislocation. Measurements were considered as continuous variables, graphically depicted against each other on frequency scatter plots, and analyzed by means of Pearson correlation coefficients. Only 1 bivariate comparison demonstrated a weak negative correlation (Engel's angle versus Obliquity_1 [Pearson -0.259; p = .002]). The results of this investigation did not demonstrate a statistically significant or clinically substantial relationship between the obliquity of the first metatarsal-cuneiform joint and common radiograph parameters of the HAV deformity. Although not specifically studied here, these results might potentially indicate function, as opposed to structure, in the developmental pathogenesis of the HAV deformity.

Clinical Assessment and Management of Foot and Ankle Osteoarthritis: A Review of Current Evidence and Focus on Pharmacological Treatment.

Foot and ankle osteoarthritis (OA) is a common and disabling problem that adversely affects physical function and significantly reduces quality of life. Although the knee was considered to be the lower-limb site most often affected by OA, recent population data showed foot OA is as prevalent as knee OA, and rates increase with advancing years. The most common foot OA sites include the first metatarsophalangeal joint and the midfoot, with the ankle affected less often. Despite the high prevalence and disabling nature of foot and ankle OA, the condition has been neglected by clinical researchers, and there are very few trials investigating non-surgical foot or ankle OA treatment options. There are no accepted clinical diagnostic criteria for foot or ankle OA so imaging remains common. Clinical guidelines based on knee and hip OA research recommend education, exercise, and weight loss in the first instance. Topical non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) or capsaicin may be used as an adjunct. Failing these approaches, acetaminophen (paracetamol) should be recommended; however, if there is inadequate symptomatic relief, then clinicians should trial an oral NSAID or a cyclo-oxygenase-2 inhibitor. Given that adverse events and co-morbidities are common in the elderly, older patients should be closely monitored. Some studies have investigated intra-articular injections for foot and ankle OA, and there is some evidence to suggest hyaluronic acid may be effective in the short term for ankle OA. With the lack of research on foot or ankle OA treatments, however, robust clinical trials are urgently needed.

Discordance between clinical and imaging criteria: assessment by magnetic resonance imaging of the foot of patients with rheumatoid arthritis.

Evaluation of the correlation between disease activity and joint involvement was assessed by MRI in the clinically dominant foot of patients with RA. We conducted a cross-sectional descriptive study of 55 patients with RA, who were subjected to clinical evaluation and MRI assessment. Imaging of the clinically dominant foot was performed, and both the Disease Activity Score 28 (DAS28-CRP) and the Health Assessment Questionnaire-Disability Index (HAQ-DI) were measured. The majority of patients classified as in clinical remission presented some degree of inflammatory activity upon MRI evaluation. Statistical analysis demonstrated no correlation between MRI findings and clinical scores. There is evidence of disease activity on MRI of the clinically dominant foot even in patients classified as in clinical remission according to the DAS28-CRP criteria.

Level of agreement between three-dimensional volumetric ultrasound and real-time conventional ultrasound in the assessment of synovitis, tenosynovitis and erosions in rheumatoid arthritis patients.

The aim of the study was to assess agreement between three-dimensional volumetric ultrasound (3D US) performed by inexperienced staff and real-time conventional ultrasound (2D US) performed by experienced rheumatologists in detecting and scoring rheumatoid arthritis (RA) lesions. Thirty-one RA patients underwent examination of seven joints by 2D and 3D US for synovitis and tenosynovitis in B and PD modes and erosions in B mode. A global score for synovitis and global counts for synovitis, tenosynovitis and erosions were also calculated for every patient. Agreement between 2D and 3D US was analysed for counts and scores at the patient level with the intraclass correlation coefficient (ICC) and for counts at the joint level with Cohen's kappa coefficient. B-mode synovitis was detected at a median of five joints in each patient, frequently in wrists and hand joints but less frequently in foot joints. PD-mode synovitis, tenosynovitis and erosions were detected less frequently. All ICCs for agreement between 2D and 3D US findings were significant. All kappa coefficients were significant for B- and PD-mode synovitis and for erosions (except PIP3), while those for tenosynovitis were only significant for MCP2 (B and PD modes) and PIP2 (B mode). Although the 3D US volumes were acquired by inexperienced operators, agreement between 2D and 3D US was acceptable in detecting and scoring synovitis. A higher level of agreement was attained for patient-level global scores and counts than for individual joints.

Investigations of Potential Phenotypes of Foot Osteoarthritis: Cross-Sectional Analysis From the Clinical Assessment Study of the Foot.

OBJECTIVE: To investigate the existence of distinct foot osteoarthritis (OA) phenotypes based on pattern of joint involvement and comparative symptom and risk profiles. METHODS: Participants ages ≥50 years reporting foot pain in the previous year were drawn from a population-based cohort. Radiographs were scored for OA in the first metatarsophalangeal (MTP) joint, first and second cuneometatarsal, navicular first cuneiform, and talonavicular joints according to a published atlas. Chi-square tests established clustering, and odds ratios (ORs) examined symmetry and pairwise associations of radiographic OA in the feet. Distinct underlying classes of foot OA were investigated by latent class analysis (LCA) and their association with symptoms and risk factors was assessed. RESULTS: In 533 participants (mean age 64.9 years, 55.9% female) radiographic OA clustered across both feet (P < 0.001) and was highly symmetrical (adjusted OR 3.0, 95% confidence interval 2.1, 4.2). LCA identified 3 distinct classes of foot OA: no or minimal foot OA (64%), isolated first MTP joint OA (22%), and polyarticular foot OA (15%). After adjustment for age and sex, polyarticular foot OA was associated with nodal OA, increased body mass index, and more pain and functional limitation compared to the other classes. CONCLUSION: Patterning of radiographic foot OA has provided insight into the existence of 2 forms of foot OA: isolated first MTP joint OA and polyarticular foot OA. The symptom and risk factor profiles in individuals with polyarticular foot OA indicate a possible distinctive phenotype of foot OA, but further research is needed to explore the characteristics of isolated first MTP joint and polyarticular foot OA.

Toward Quantitative Assessment of Rheumatoid Arthritis Using Volumetric Ultrasound.

GOAL: Rheumatoid arthritis (RA) is characterized by inflammation within the joint space as well as erosion or destruction of the bone surface. We believe that volumetric (3-D) ultrasound imaging of the joints in conjunction with automated image-analysis tools for segmenting and quantifying the regions of interest can lead to improved RA assessment. METHODS: In this paper, we describe our proposed algorithms for segmenting 1) the 3 -D bone surface and 2) the 3-D joint capsule region. We improve and extend previous 2-D bone extraction methods to 3-D and make our algorithm more robust to the intensity loss due to surface normals facing away from incident acoustic beams. The extracted bone surfaces coupled with a joint-specific anatomical model are used to initialize a coarse localization of the joint capsule region. The joint capsule segmentation is refined iteratively utilizing a probabilistic speckle model. RESULTS: We apply our methods on 51 volumes from 8 subjects, and validate segmentation results with expert annotations. We also provide the quantitative comparison of our bone detection with magnetic resonance imaging. These automated methods have achieved average sensitivity/precision rates of 94%/93% for bone surface detection, and 87%/83% for joint capsule segmentation. Segmentations of normal and inflamed joints are compared to demonstrate the potential of using proposed tools to assess RA pathology at the joint level. CONCLUSION: The proposed image-analysis methods showed encouraging results as compared to expert annotations. SIGNIFICANCE: These computer-assisted tools can be used to help visualize 3-D anatomy in joints and help develop quantitative measurements toward RA assessment.

Clinical diagnosis of symptomatic midfoot osteoarthritis: cross-sectional findings from the Clinical Assessment Study of the Foot.

OBJECTIVE: To derive a multivariable diagnostic model for symptomatic midfoot osteoarthritis (OA). METHODS: Information on potential risk factors and clinical manifestations of symptomatic midfoot OA was collected using a health survey and standardised clinical examination of a population-based sample of 274 adults aged ≥50 years with midfoot pain. Following univariable analysis, random intercept multi-level logistic regression modelling that accounted for clustered data was used to identify the presence of midfoot OA independently scored on plain radiographs (dorso-plantar and lateral views), and defined as a score of ≥2 for osteophytes or joint space narrowing in at least one of four joints (first and second cuneometatarsal, navicular-first cuneiform and talonavicular joints). Model performance was summarised using the calibration slope and area under the curve (AUC). Internal validation and sensitivity analyses explored model over-fitting and certain assumptions. RESULTS: Compared to persons with midfoot pain only, symptomatic midfoot OA was associated with measures of static foot posture and range-of-motion at subtalar and ankle joints. Arch Index was the only retained clinical variable in a model containing age, gender and body mass index. The final model was poorly calibrated (calibration slope, 0.64, 95% CI: 0.39, 0.89) and discrimination was fair-to-poor (AUC, 0.64, 95% CI: 0.58, 0.70). Final model sensitivity and specificity were 29.9% (95% CI: 22.7, 38.0) and 87.5% (95% CI: 82.9, 91.3), respectively. Bootstrapping revealed the model to be over-optimistic and performance was not improved using continuous predictors. CONCLUSIONS: Brief clinical assessments provided only marginal information for identifying the presence of radiographic midfoot OA among community-dwelling persons with midfoot pain.

Comparison between full and tapered dosages of biologic therapies in psoriatic arthritis patients: clinical and ultrasound assessment.

The primary objective of this study was to describe and compare clinical and musculoskeletal (MS) ultrasound (US) features between psoriatic arthritis (PsA) patients treated with full and tapered dosage of biologic (b) disease-modified antirheumatic drugs (DMARDs). The secondary objective was to compare clinical and MSUS features between PsA patients treated with bDMARDs with and without concomitant synthetic (s) DMARDs. We evaluated 102 patients with PsA treated with bDMARDs. The bDMARD dosage tapering had been made in patients with a maintained remission or minimal disease activity (MDA) according to their attending rheumatologist and with the patient acceptance. The bDMARD tapering consisted of the following: increase the interval between doses for subcutaneous bDMARDs or reduction of the dose for intravenous bDMARDs. The clinical evaluation consisted of a dermatologic and rheumatologic assessment of disease activity. The presence of B-mode and Doppler synovitis, tenosynovitis, enthesopathy, and paratenonitis was investigated by a rheumatologist blinded to drug dosage, clinical assessments, and laboratory results. Seventy-four (72.5 %) patients received full dosage of bDMARDs and 28 (27.5 %) received tapered dosage. The duration with biologic therapy and with current biologic therapy was significantly higher in patients with tapered dosages (p = 0.008 and p = 0.001, respectively). We found no significant differences between clinical, laboratory, and US variables, both for BM and CD between patients with full and tapered dosage and between patients with and without concomitant sDMARD. Clinical assessment, MSUS variables, and MDA status are similar in patients receiving full and tapered dosage of bDMARDs.

The population prevalence of symptomatic radiographic foot osteoarthritis in community-dwelling older adults: cross-sectional findings from the clinical assessment study of the foot.

OBJECTIVES: To estimate the population prevalence of symptomatic radiographic osteoarthritis (OA) affecting the 1st metatarsophalangeal joint (MTPJ), 1st and 2nd cuneometatarsal joints (CMJs), navicular first cuneiform joint (NCJ) and talonavicular joint (TNJ) in community-dwelling older adults. METHODS: 9334 adults aged ≥50 years registered with four general practices were mailed a health survey. Responders reporting foot pain within the last 12 months were invited to undergo weight-bearing dorso-plantar and lateral radiographs of both feet. OA at the 1st MTPJ, 1st and 2nd CMJs, NCJ and TNJ was graded using a validated atlas. Population prevalence estimates for symptomatic radiographic foot OA overall and for each joint were calculated using multiple imputation and weighted logistic regression modelling to account for missing data and non-response. RESULTS: 5109 health surveys were received (adjusted response 56%). Radiographs were obtained on 557 participants. Overall population prevalence of symptomatic radiographic OA was 16.7% (95% CI 15.3% to 18.0%), 1st MTPJ 7.8% (6.7% to 8.9%), 1st CMJ 3.9% (2.9% to 4.9%), 2nd CMJ 6.8% (5.7% to 7.8%), NCJ 5.2% (4.0% to 6.4%) and TNJ 5.8% (4.8% to 6.9%). With the exception of the 1st CMJ, prevalence was greater in females than males, increased with age and was higher in lower socioeconomic classes. Three-quarters of those with symptomatic radiographic OA reported disabling foot symptoms. CONCLUSIONS: While cautious interpretation due to non-response is warranted, our study suggests that symptomatic radiographic foot OA affects one in six older adults and the majority report associated disability. Clinicians should consider OA as a possible cause of chronic foot pain in older people.

The forgotten foot - An assessment of foot and ankle radiograph pathology in final year medical students.

INTRODUCTION: It has been shown that doctors in Emergency Departments (EDs) have inconsistent knowledge of musculoskeletal anatomy. This is most likely due to a deficiency in focused musculoskeletal modules at undergraduate level in medical school. The aims of this study were to evaluate the knowledge of final year medical students on foot anatomy and common foot and ankle pathology as seen on radiographs. METHODS: Final year medical students were asked to complete our short examination on a handout. The handout was anonymous and non-mandatory. There were four images. The first image is the anatomical section and the remaining images are the pathological section. RESULTS: All 235 students responded. 57% were females. For the identification of the normal bones of the foot as shown on an X-ray, the average score for the group was 2.69 (out of a maximum of 6) {SD 1.67}7. Only 8.3% achieved a 6/6 or 100% grade i.e. recognising all six bones correctly. A further 8.3% achieved 5/6 (83%). 8.3% failed to correctly identify any bone seen on the X-ray, a corresponding score of 0. DISCUSSION: This quick test showed normal anatomy of the foot and common pathology. One would expect final year medical students to be familiar with, especially two weeks before their finals in surgery. The curriculum should address the paucity of time spent in educating students in foot and ankle pathology.

Do the 2010 ACR/EULAR or ACR 1987 classification criteria predict erosive disease in early arthritis?

BACKGROUND: The new 2010 American College of Rheumatology (ACR)/European League Against Rheumatism (EULAR) classification criteria for rheumatoid arthritis (RA) aim at earlier diagnosis of RA compared to the 1987 ACR criteria. OBJECTIVE: To evaluate the ability of the 2010 ACR/EULAR and the 1987 ACR classification criteria to predict radiographic progression after 10 years of follow-up. METHODS: All early arthritis patients referred to Central Hospital in Jyväskylä from 1997 to 1999 (cases with peripheral joint synovitis, other specific diseases excluded) were included in this 10-year follow-up study. Radiographs of hands and feet were analysed according to Larsen on a scale of 0-100. RESULTS: At 10 years, 58% of the patients had an erosive disease (defined as Larsen ≥2 in at least one joint). The discriminative power of the 2010 ACR/EULAR and the 1987 ACR criteria (erosive disease at 10 years) were comparable, with area under the curve 0.72 (95% CI 0.65 to 0.79) (2010 ACR/EULAR criteria) and 0.65 (95% CI 0.58 to 0.72) (1987 ACR criteria). The respective sensitivities and specificities were 0.87 and 0.70, and 0.44 and 0.47. At 10 years, median (IQR) Larsen score was 6 (0, 15) among patients who had fulfilled both sets of criteria, 2 (0, 8) in those who met the 2010 ACR/EULAR and did not meet the ACR 1987 criteria, 0 (0, 5) in those who met ACR 1987 criteria but did not meet 2010 ACR/EULAR criteria, and 0 (0, 2) among patients who did not fulfil either of the criteria. The percentage of patients with erosions was 69%, 64%, 32% and 26%, respectively. CONCLUSIONS: The ability of the 2010 ACR/EULAR and 1987 ACR classification criteria to identify erosive disease in early arthritis is low. The discriminative power of the 2010 ACR/EULAR criteria of erosiveness in 10 years is slightly better than that of the 1987 ACR criteria.

Ultrasound imaging for the rheumatologist XXXVI. Sonographic assessment of the foot in gout patients.

OBJECTIVES: This study aims to investigate the relationship between clinical and US findings together with the prevalence and distribution of US findings indicative of monosodium urate (MSU) crystal deposition within the foot in patients with gout. METHODS: A total of 50 patients with gout attending the in-patient and the out-patient clinics of the Rheumatology Departments were prospectively enrolled in this multi-centre study. Multiplanar examination of the following 15 joints was performed: talo-navicular, navicular-cuneiform (medial, intermediate and lateral), calcaneo-cuboid, medial, intermediate and lateral cuneiform-metatarsal, cuboid-4th metatarsal, cuboid-5th metatarsal and all five metatarsophalangeal (MTP) joints. RESULTS: The following US findings were indicative of gout: enhancement of the superficial margin of the hyaline cartilage, intra-articular tophus, and extraarticular tophus. In 46 patients, a total of 1380 foot joints were investigated. In 1309 joints that were not clinically involved, US detected signs indicative of joint inflammation in 9% (121/1309). Talo-navicular joint and the first MTP joint were the joints in which the highest number of US findings were found at mid-foot and fore-foot, respectively. At MTP joint level, dorsal scans allowed the detection of a higher number of US findings indicative of joint inflammation, and MSU crystal deposits rather than on the volar plane. CONCLUSIONS: This study demonstrated that US detected a higher number of inflamed foot joints than clinical examination, and that the first MTP and the talo-navicular joints were the anatomic sites with the highest prevalence of US signs of MSU crystal aggregates.

Ultrasound imaging for the rheumatologist XXXIV. Sonographic assessment of the painful foot.

The foot is increasingly the focus of attention for rheumatologists when assessing patients presenting to a clinic and may represent underlying intra-articular inflammatory pathology or involvement of the surrounding soft tissues. This study describes the correlation between clinical and ultrasound (US) findings in patients presenting with a variety of rheumatic disorders linked with foot pain. Poor correlation was found between conventional clinical examination and US in cases with joint inflammation, tendonitis and, more particularly, those cases with enthesopathy.

Ultrasound imaging for the rheumatologist XXXIII. Sonographic assessment of the foot in early arthritis patients.

OBJECTIVES: To investigate the ability of ultrasonography (US) to detect synovitis in metatarsophalangeal joints (MTP) in patients with suspicion of early arthritis, and to discriminate between diagnoses. METHODS: Patients referred to early arthritis clinics for differential diagnosis were enrolled, and clinical and laboratory measures were recorded. Ultrasonography of MTPs was performed searching for synovial hypertrophy (SH), joint effusion (JE) and power Doppler (PD), graded from 0 to 3 on a semi-quantitative scale. Patients were classified according to definite classification criteria, or as undifferentiated arthritis or non-inflammatory pathology. US findings were compared across different diagnoses and diagnostic accuracy was calculated taking clinical diagnosis as reference. RESULTS: Out of 427 patients (71% rheumatoid arthritis (RA), 20% undifferentiated arthritis (UA), 15% spondyloarthritides (SpA), 13% non-inflammatory), 307 (71.9%) showed SH, 120 (25.5%) JE, 77 (18.0%) PD. RA patients had median JE, SH and PD scores significantly higher than non-inflammatory and other diseases. Patient with UA and SpA had higher scores of SH and JE compared to non-inflammatory, no significant differences were present among different diagnosis. In RA, SH and JE were more frequently detected in the second MTP, and PD in the fifth. Crystal-related arthritis showed a tendency towards a more frequent involvement of the first MTP. The diagnostic accuracy of single US measures was moderate, but the detection of a PD of 2 or more provided a high specificity for the diagnosis of RA. CONCLUSIONS: US can be used as additional information in patients evaluated in an early arthritis setting. High scores of JE, SH and PD, together with the pattern of involvement are suggestive of RA.

Ultrasound imaging for the rheumatologist. XXXI. Sonographic assessment of the foot in patients with rheumatoid arthritis.

OBJECTIVES: The aims of our study were to investigate the prevalence of ultrasound (US) abnormalities in the foot of patients with rheumatoid arthritis (RA) and to compare them with the clinical findings. METHODS: One hundred RA patients were enrolled in the study. Bilateral US examination of metatarsophalangeal (MTP) joints, proximal interphalangeal (PIP) joints, midfoot joints (talonavicular, calcaneo-cuboid, medial, intermediate and lateral navicular-cuneiform and cuneiform-metatarsal joints and cuboid-4th and 5th metatarsal joints) were examined for synovitis and erosion. In addition the plantar fascia and the insertion of the anterior and posterior tibialis and peroneous brevis tendons were imaged. RESULTS: Effusion with synovial proliferation was visualised only at MTP joints in 84 out of 200 (42%) feet, at MTP plus at least one joint of the midfoot in other 41 out of 200 (20%) feet (making a total of 125 out of 200 (62%) MTP joints) exclusively in one or more joints of the midfoot in 7 out 200 (3%) feet, in the PIP joint of the 2nd and 3rd toes in 3 (1.5%) and 4 (2%) feet respectively, while no effusion with synovial proliferation was visualised in the PIP joint of the 4th and 5th toes. Synovitis was present most frequently in the 2nd MTP joint whilst erosions were most frequently imaged in the 5th MTP joint. CONCLUSIONS: US examination appears to be a useful imaging technique to study joint and tendon involvement of the foot in RA patients. Moreover, US examination of the foot is more sensitive than clinical examination in the detection of joint inflammation and allows for a better understanding of the features and the progression of the disease.

Assessment of cartilage loss at the wrist in rheumatoid arthritis using a new MRI scoring system.

OBJECTIVES: To develop and test an MRI cartilage scoring system for use at the wrist in rheumatoid arthritis (RA). METHODS: MRI scans were obtained using a 3T MRI scanner with dedicated wrist coil in 22 early and 16 established RA patients plus 22 controls. Axial and coronal T1-weighted (precontrast and postcontrast) and T2-weighted turbo spin echo sequences were obtained. Eight wrist joints were scored for cartilage narrowing: distal radioulnar, radiolunate, radioscaphoid, triquetrum-hamate, capitate-lunate, scaphotrapezoid, second metacarpal base-trapezoid and third metacarpal base-capitate, using a system based on the Sharp van der Heijde x-ray joint space narrowing (JSN) score by three radiologists. Fifteen sites at the wrist were also scored for synovitis, bone oedema and erosion using the RA MRI score. RESULTS: Interobserver (three-reader) and intraobserver reliability (readers 1 and 2) for the cartilage score were excellent: intraclass correlations (ICC (95% CI)) 0.91, (0.86 to 0.94), 0.98 (0.96 to 1.00) and 0.94 (0.87 to 1.00), respectively. Cartilage scores (median, range) were higher in the established RA group (11.9, 2.3-27.3) than the early RA group (2.15, 0-6) (p≤0.001) but early RA scores did not differ from healthy controls (2.3, 1-8.7). Cartilage scores correlated with synovitis (R=0.52), bone oedema (R=0.63) and erosion scores (R=0.66), p<0.001 for all, and with x-ray JSN scores (R=0.68 to 0.78). CONCLUSION: This MRI cartilage score demonstrated excellent reliability when tested in a three-reader system. However, cartilage loss in early RA could not be distinguished from that seen in healthy controls.