MRI scores of ankle joints in children with haemophilia--comparison with clinical data.

Fifty-six ankle joints in 38 haemophilic boys were investigated by magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) and the findings were classified according to both the Denver- and the European scoring schemes. The different MRI scores were compared with each other and with clinical data on number of joint bleeds and the orthopaedic joint score. MRI changes that were more advanced than a small effusion were found in 33 (59%) of the ankles and osteochondral changes were observed in 20 (36%). The total number of bleeds in individual ankles ranged from 0 to 80 (mean: 11). The orthopaedic joint score was 0 for 49 ankles and ranged from one to four for seven ankles. There was a significant and strong correlation between the assessment results obtained with the two MRI scoring methods (correlation coefficients ranged from 0.80 to 0.95, P < 0.001), and both types of MRI scores were weakly but significantly correlated with the clinical data on the number of joint bleeds and the orthopaedic joint score (correlation coefficients: 0.32-0.39, P < 0.01 or P < 0.05). MRI is useful for evaluating early joint changes in patients with haemophilia. The European scoring method differentiates the arthropathic changes further than the Denver scale does, but the two different scoring methods have similar correlation to the number of joint bleeds and the orthopaedic joint score.