Key result
Ultrasound, MRI, and HR-pQCT enable proactive risk assessment to identify preclinical rheumatoid arthritis.
Why the study?
Identifying individuals in the preclinical phase of rheumatoid arthritis enables a preventive window of opportunity, motivating proactive risk assessment using imaging.
Can imaging modalities (US, MRI, HR-pQCT) identify at-risk individuals and predict the development of rheumatoid arthritis?
Can imaging modalities (US, MRI, HR-pQCT) identify at-risk individuals and predict the development of rheumatoid arthritis?
Imaging modalities such as US, MRI, and HR-pQCT may help identify individuals in the preclinical phase of rheumatoid arthritis, potentially enabling a preventive window of opportunity.
May support preclinical risk stratification in rheumatoid arthritis; hypothesis-generating and requires prospective validation before clinical adoption.
Rheumatoid arthritis (RA) remains a chronic debilitating disease with a significant negative societal impact, despite the expanding landscape of treatment options. This condition is often preceded by a phase of systemic autoimmunity with circulating autoantibodies, elevated pro-inflammatory cytokines, or subtle structural changes. The capability of identifying individuals in the preclinical phase of RA disease makes a "preventive window of opportunity" possible. Much recent work has focused on the role of imaging modalities including ultrasound (US), magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), and high-resolution peripheral quantitative computer tomography (HR-pQCT) in identifying at-risk individuals with or without early joint symptoms for the development of inflammatory arthritis. This article will review the evidence and discuss the challenges as well as opportunities of proactive risk assessment by imaging in RA.
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So et al. (2021) conducted a review in Rheumatoid arthritis. Imaging modalities (US, MRI, HR-pQCT) was evaluated. Imaging modalities including ultrasound, MRI, and HR-pQCT offer opportunities for proactive risk assessment to identify individuals in the preclinical phase of rheumatoid arthritis.
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