Skip to main content
PMC home page
Annals of the Rheumatic Diseases logoLink to Annals of the Rheumatic Diseases
. 1998 May;57(5):268–271. doi: 10.1136/ard.57.5.268

Ultrasonography in rheumatology: an evolving technique

W GRASSI 1, C CERVINI 1
PMCID: PMC1752596  PMID: 9741308

Full Text

The Full Text of this article is available as a PDF (102.1 KB).

Figure 1  .

Figure 1  

Open in a new tab

(A) Condylar cartilage in a healthy subject (transverse scan with a 7.5 MHZ linear transducer at the superior margin of the patella). Cartilaginous band is homogeneously hypoechoic with sharp inner and outer margins. (B) Normal appearance of finger flexor tendons (longitudinal scan with a 13 MHZ transducer). Note the typical fibrillar texture. (C) Median nerve in a healthy subject (longitudinal scan with a 13 MHZ transducer). Nerve echotexture is characterised by subtle, discontinuous hyperechoic bands on a hypoechoic background. This fascicular pattern can easily be differentiated from the fibrillar pattern of tendons. (D) Popliteal cyst in a patient with chondrocalcinosis (longitudinal scan with a 13 MHZ transducer).The small echoic (white) spots on the background of the anechoic (black) synovial fluid can be regarded as aggregates of calcium pyrophosphate dihydrate crystals. (E) Rheumatoid arthritis (longitudinal dorsal scan of a metacarpophalangeal joint with a 13 MHZ linear transducer). Note the joint space widening and the small erosion of the metacarpal head. (F) Small, superficial popliteal cyst (longitudinal scan with a 20 MHZ sector transducer) with clearly evident polipoid synovial hyperthrophy.

Selected References

These references are in PubMed. This may not be the complete list of references from this article.

  1. Aisen A. M., McCune W. J., MacGuire A., Carson P. L., Silver T. M., Jafri S. Z., Martel W. Sonographic evaluation of the cartilage of the knee. Radiology. 1984 Dec;153(3):781–784. doi: 10.1148/radiology.153.3.6387794. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  2. Andonopoulos A. P., Yarmenitis S., Sfountouris H., Siamplis D., Zervas C., Bounas A. Baker's cyst in rheumatoid arthritis: an ultrasonographic study with a high resolution technique. Clin Exp Rheumatol. 1995 Sep-Oct;13(5):633–636. [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  3. Breidahl W. H., Newman J. S., Taljanovic M. S., Adler R. S. Power Doppler sonography in the assessment of musculoskeletal fluid collections. AJR Am J Roentgenol. 1996 Jun;166(6):1443–1446. doi: 10.2214/ajr.166.6.8633460. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  4. Bullough P. G., DiCarlo E. F. Subchondral avascular necrosis: a common cause of arthritis. Ann Rheum Dis. 1990 Jun;49(6):412–420. doi: 10.1136/ard.49.6.412. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  5. Downey D. B., Fenster A. Vascular imaging with a three-dimensional power Doppler system. AJR Am J Roentgenol. 1995 Sep;165(3):665–668. doi: 10.2214/ajr.165.3.7645492. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  6. Glick R., Parhami N. Frostbite arthritis. J Rheumatol. 1979 Jul-Aug;6(4):456–460. [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  7. Grassi W., Tittarelli E., Blasetti P., Pirani O., Cervini C. Finger tendon involvement in rheumatoid arthritis. Evaluation with high-frequency sonography. Arthritis Rheum. 1995 Jun;38(6):786–794. doi: 10.1002/art.1780380611. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  8. Grassi W., Tittarelli E., Pirani O., Avaltroni D., Cervini C. Ultrasound examination of metacarpophalangeal joints in rheumatoid arthritis. Scand J Rheumatol. 1993;22(5):243–247. doi: 10.3109/03009749309095131. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  9. Iagnocco A., Coari G., Zoppini A. Sonographic evaluation of femoral condylar cartilage in osteoarthritis and rheumatoid arthritis. Scand J Rheumatol. 1992;21(4):201–203. doi: 10.3109/03009749209099222. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  10. Ihn H., Shimozuma M., Fujimoto M., Sato S., Kikuchi K., Igarashi A., Soma Y., Tamaki K., Takehara K. Ultrasound measurement of skin thickness in systemic sclerosis. Br J Rheumatol. 1995 Jun;34(6):535–538. doi: 10.1093/rheumatology/34.6.535. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  11. Kay J., Benson C. B., Lester S., Corson J. M., Pinkus G. S., Lazarus J. M., Owen W. F., Jr Utility of high-resolution ultrasound for the diagnosis of dialysis-related amyloidosis. Arthritis Rheum. 1992 Aug;35(8):926–932. doi: 10.1002/art.1780350812. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  12. Koski J. M., Anttila P., Hämäläinen M., Isomäki H. Hip joint ultrasonography: correlation with intra-articular effusion and synovitis. Br J Rheumatol. 1990 Jun;29(3):189–192. doi: 10.1093/rheumatology/29.3.189. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  13. Lehtinen A., Taavitsainen M., Leirisalo-Repo M. Sonographic analysis of enthesopathy in the lower extremities of patients with spondylarthropathy. Clin Exp Rheumatol. 1994 Mar-Apr;12(2):143–148. [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  14. Makula E., Pokorny G., Rajtár M., Kiss I., Kovács A., Kovács L. Parotid gland ultrasonography as a diagnostic tool in primary Sjögren's syndrome. Br J Rheumatol. 1996 Oct;35(10):972–977. doi: 10.1093/rheumatology/35.10.972. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  15. Manger B., Kalden J. R. Joint and connective tissue ultrasonography--a rheumatologic bedside procedure? A German experience. Arthritis Rheum. 1995 Jun;38(6):736–742. doi: 10.1002/art.1780380603. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  16. Mariacher-Gehler S., Michel B. A. Sonography: a simple way to visualize rib fractures. AJR Am J Roentgenol. 1994 Nov;163(5):1268–1268. doi: 10.2214/ajr.163.5.7976923. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  17. Martino F., D'Amore M., Angelelli G., Macarini L., Cantatore F. P. Echographic study of Tietze's syndrome. Clin Rheumatol. 1991 Mar;10(1):2–4. doi: 10.1007/BF02208023. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  18. Martinoli C., Derchi L. E., Pastorino C., Bertolotto M., Silvestri E. Analysis of echotexture of tendons with US. Radiology. 1993 Mar;186(3):839–843. doi: 10.1148/radiology.186.3.8430196. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  19. McCune W. J., Dedrick D. K., Aisen A. M., MacGuire A. Sonographic evaluation of osteoarthritic femoral condylar cartilage. Correlation with operative findings. Clin Orthop Relat Res. 1990 May;(254):230–235. [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  20. Nazarian L. N., Rawool N. M., Martin C. E., Schweitzer M. E. Synovial fluid in the hindfoot and ankle: detection of amount and distribution with US. Radiology. 1995 Oct;197(1):275–278. doi: 10.1148/radiology.197.1.7568837. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  21. Newman J. S., Adler R. S., Bude R. O., Rubin J. M. Detection of soft-tissue hyperemia: value of power Doppler sonography. AJR Am J Roentgenol. 1994 Aug;163(2):385–389. doi: 10.2214/ajr.163.2.8037037. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  22. Ozdemir H., Atilla H., Atilla S., Işik S., Zilelioğlu G. Diagnosis of ocular involvement in Behçet's disease: value of spectral and color Doppler sonography. AJR Am J Roentgenol. 1995 May;164(5):1223–1227. doi: 10.2214/ajr.164.5.7717235. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  23. Richardson M. L., Selby B., Montana M. A., Mack L. A. Ultrasonography of the knee. Radiol Clin North Am. 1988 Jan;26(1):63–75. [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  24. Schmidt W. A., Kraft H. E., Völker L., Vorpahl K., Gromnica-Ihle E. J. Colour Doppler sonography to diagnose temporal arteritis. Lancet. 1995 Apr 1;345(8953):866–866. doi: 10.1016/s0140-6736(95)93005-1. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  25. Schwenke R. Kasuistischer Beitrag zur Osteoarthropathie nach Erfrierung. Z Gesamte Inn Med. 1984 Dec 1;39(23):592–595. [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  26. Silvestri E., Martinoli C., Derchi L. E., Bertolotto M., Chiaramondia M., Rosenberg I. Echotexture of peripheral nerves: correlation between US and histologic findings and criteria to differentiate tendons. Radiology. 1995 Oct;197(1):291–296. doi: 10.1148/radiology.197.1.7568840. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  27. Spiegel T. M., King W., 3rd, Weiner S. R., Paulus H. E. Measuring disease activity: comparison of joint tenderness, swelling, and ultrasonography in rheumatoid arthritis. Arthritis Rheum. 1987 Nov;30(11):1283–1288. doi: 10.1002/art.1780301111. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]

Articles from Annals of the Rheumatic Diseases are provided here courtesy of BMJ Publishing Group

RESOURCES