| Popis: |
Background One of the difficulties of rheumatology practice is the differentiation of Psoriatic Arthritis (PsA) and Nodal Osteoarthritis (NOA) in some patients with distal interphalangeal joint involvement. MRI and ultrasound imaging, have recently been demonstrated as inconclusive in some cases (1,2). This differentiation is critical, as treatment for these debilitating conditions is completely different. Objectives To establish a scoring system of radiographic joint and soft tissue features to differentiate PsA from NOA. Methods We devised a scoring system for hand radiographs of interphalangeal joints, soft tissue and bone features, allocated major and minor weighting. The scoring system was then tested in a single blind analysis of hand radiographs from 48 patients with PsA, 50 with NOA and 1 with RA (incorrectly classified as PsA at study entry) seen between 2008 and 2016. Anonymised patient images were assessed by a Musculoskeletal (MSK) Radiologist, blind to clinical information. Radiological diagnosis was then compared with clinical diagnosis. We taught the method to 2 rheumatology and 1 radiology trainees over 1 hour, who then independently assessed the same radiographs. Results The MSK radiologist reported normal hand radiographs in 5 patient sets. Of the remaining 94 patient sets, the scoring system correctly allocated 100% of images into PsA, NOA or RA. Notably, 2 patients with NOA who subsequently developed PsA several years later, and 1 patient with seropositive RA, initially misclassified as PsA, were correctly identified by the MSK radiologist. Trainees using the system also achieved good agreement, after removing radiographs assessed as normal; Rheumatology trainees: 88% and 67% correct; Radiology trainee: 70% correct. Conclusions This initial single-centre study shows our novel radiological scoring system is effective at differentiating patients with PsA from NOA. Radiographs provide an accurate, time-efficient (for both clinician and patient) and inexpensive test. We also show that trainees can learn this scoring system with moderate accuracy after a short educational programme. We are currently carrying out a detailed analysis of the scoring system to optimise accuracy and ease of use by non-radiologists. References McGonagle D, Hermann KG, Tan AL. Differentiation between osteoarthritis and psoriatic arthritis: implications for pathogenesis and treatment in the biologic therapy era. Rheumatology. 2015;54:29–38. Yumusakhuylu Y, Kasapoglu-Gunal E, Murat S et al. A preliminary study showing that ultrasonography cannot differentiate between psoriatic arthritis and nodal osteoarthritis based on enthesopathy scores. Rheumatology. 2016; 55:1703–4. Disclosure of Interest None declared |
