Nanoparticle-based diagnostic imaging of inflammation in rheumatic disease.

A variety of imaging modalities assists in the diagnosis and assessment of rheumatoid arthritis and of other rheumatic disorders; however, the definitive diagnosis of inflammatory arthritides can be challenging, especially in the early stages of disease. Consequently, there is significant research underway in expanding imaging sensitivity and specificity to aid in diagnostics of early stage inflammation and management of subclinical disease activity. Nanotechnology, the manipulation of materials in the nanoscale range (1 to 1000nm), is increasingly utilized in the biomedical field to meet this need, particularly as novel contrast agents in imaging. In this review, the use of superparamagnetic iron oxide (SPIO), gold, and chitosan glyco-nanoparticles will be discussed in their imaging capabilities pertaining to rheumatic diseases as well as emerging multimodal nanomaterials that could have future biomedical applications in the imaging of inflammation.