Article

OBJECTIVES: To describe the ultrasound features of nonstructural damage
(effusions, synovitis, Doppler signal abnormalities) in the proximal
interphalangeal (PIP) and distal interphalangeal (DIP) joints of the fingers in
patients with finger osteoarthritis compared to healthy controls. METHODS: We
included patients at a hospital-based outpatient rheumatology clinic who met
American College of Rheumatology criteria for finger osteoarthritis and we
compared them to healthy controls. Exclusion criteria were the same in both
groups. We collected demographic data and symptoms. Ultrasonography (Esaote
Technos machine, two sonographers) was performed in all participants in both
groups and plain radiography in the patients only. The PIP and DIP joints on
fingers 2 to 5 were evaluated. Ultrasound features were compared between the two
groups. RESULTS: We included 55 patients (51 women; 440 PIPs and 440 DIPs) and 46
healthy controls (368 PIPs and 368 DIPs). The rate of PIP joint effusion was
similar in the two groups (patients, 2.05+/-2.03; controls, 1.6+/-1.7; P>0.05),
whereas the rate of DIP effusion was significantly higher in the patients
(2.09+/-1.87 versus 0+/-0.6 in the controls; P<0.05). Increased vascularization
by Doppler evaluation was rare and occurred chiefly in the DIP joints of the
patients. None of the participants in either group had synovitis. The ultrasound
abnormalities were not significantly different between right- and left-handed
individuals, and neither did they correlate with clinical disease expression or
severity of the radiographic damage.
CI - Copyright A(c) 2010. Published by Elsevier SAS.

Langue : ANGLAIS