Ultrasound findings on patients with juvenile idiopathic arthritis in clinical remission.

OBJECTIVE: To assess whether children with juvenile idiopathic arthritis (JIA) in clinical remission show pathologic findings on either gray-scale or power Doppler ultrasound of their joints.
METHODS: Children with JIA were eligible if they were in clinical remission for at least 3 months, as defined by the absence of clinically active joints and serologic markers of inflammation. Gray-scale as well as power Doppler ultrasonography of the wrist, knee, and ankle were carried out on previously affected joints and unaffected contralateral joints. Images were read by 2 independent readers. Findings were categorized as 1) structural abnormalities in the case of synovial thickening or increased joint fluid on gray-scale ultrasound or 2) power Doppler positive in the case of an abnormal power Doppler signal.
RESULTS: The study cohort consisted of 28 patients. Eight of 14 patients with previous wrist involvement had pathologic gray-scale findings, and 3 of these 14 patients also had pathologic Doppler findings in the wrist. None of the 20 patients with past knee involvement had pathologic gray-scale or Doppler findings in the knee. Six of 15 patients with previous ankle involvement had pathologic gray-scale findings and 1 of the 15 patients had pathologic Doppler findings in the tibiotalar joint.
CONCLUSION: This study demonstrates that some patients who meet clinical criteria for remission continue to show ongoing pathology on joint ultrasound, which may be suggestive of persistent inflammation.