Rheumatology Medical News about knee OA;predictors of joint replacement

Become a Member Today!
Register

Most Viewed Abstracts

1. Report Shows Shift in Starting Salaries for Physicians

2. Rapid correction of low vitamin D status in nursing home residents

3. 2008 Exclusive Survey—Earnings: Good news for primary care income

4. Medicare pay-for-reporting effort draws fire from frustrated doctors

5. Allopurinol-induced recurrent dress syndrome: Pathophysiology and treatment

Your Article Summary

See Latest Articles

(Click the title below to leave the MDLinx Network and go to the Journal's Website)

Clinical and ultrasonographic predictors of joint replacement for knee osteoarthritis: Results from a large, 3 year, prospective EULAR study
Annals of Rheumatic Diseases, 05/29/09

Conaghan PG et al. – Longitudinal evaluation of the OA cohort demonstrated significant progression to joint replacement. In addition to severity of radiographic damage and pain, ultrasonographic detected effusion was a predictor of subsequent joint replacement.

Methods

Aim was to determine clinical and ultrasonographic predictors of joint replacement surgery across Europe in primary OA of the knee
3-year prospective study of a painful OA knee cohort
All subjects had clinical evaluation, radiographs and ultrasonography (US) at study entry
Rate of knee replacement surgery over 3-yr f/u period was determined using Kaplan-Meier survival data analyses
Potential baseline predictors included demographic, clinical, radiographic and US features

Results

531/600 (88.5%) pts, mean age 67±10 yrs, mean disease duration 6.1±6.9 yrs had f/u data and were analysed
During f/u knee replacement was done or required for 94 pts
Multivariate analysis- predictors of joint replacement were:
- Kellgren & Lawrence radiographic grade
- Ultrasonographic knee effusion
- Knee pain intensity on a 0-100 mm VAS and
- Disease duration
Clinically detected effusion and US synovitis were not associated with joint replacement in the univariate analysis