Article

The wrist is almost invariably affected in rheumatoid arthritis (RA) and
inflammation of the wrist can lead to impaired function and eventually to severe
destruction. Classical signs of inflammation, pain, swelling and heat may often
be observed in clinical examination of wrist arthritis and in ultrasound (US)
investigation. We described the relation between clinical and ultrasound
parameters of wrist arthritis and secondly their relation to function. PATIENTS
AND METHODS: In 33 RA patients with wrist arthritis, clinical and US parameters
were measured. Function was evaluated with the SODA-S (Sequential Occupational
Dexterity Assessment-Short) and the DASH-DLV (Disabilities of the Arm, Shoulder
and Hand-Dutch Language Version). Correlation coefficients were calculated and
factor analysis was performed to describe the relation between the aforementioned
measures. RESULTS: Correlation coefficients between clinical and ultrasound
parameters of RA wrist inflammation in this study were fair to moderate. We found
a good correlation between ultrasound and observed function. CONCLUSION: The
classical signs of inflammation (pain, swelling, redness, heat and impaired
function) seem to reflect different aspects of arthritis. Ultrasound correlates
well with function, thus can give paramount information on wrist function, and
might therefore be a valuable complementary tool in measuring wrist arthritis in
RA.

Langue : ANGLAIS