Annals of the Rheumatic Diseases 2005;64:936-939
© 2005 by BMJ Publishing Group Ltd & European League Against Rheumatism
EXTENDED REPORT
Lumbosacral radiographic signs in patients with previous enteroarthritis or uroarthritis
1 Department of Radiology, Helsinki University Central Hospital, Helsinki, Finland
2 Department of Medicine, Division of Rheumatology, Helsinki University Central Hospital
Correspondence to:
Dr Antti Mannoja
Marjatie 6b, FIN-00780, Helsinki, Finland; antti.mannoja{at}helsinki.fi
Objective: To investigate if there are differences in radiological findings in lumbosacral spine radiographs between different subgroups of patients with previous reactive arthritis.
Methods: 95 patients with previous enteroarthritis (n = 53), uroarthritis (n = 37), or Reiter’s syndrome, aetiology unknown (n = 5) were included in the study. Lumbosacral radiographs were taken 7 to 38 years after the initial arthritis. Three independent observers read the radiographs. Spinal changes included squaring of vertebrae, Romanus lesions, syndesmophytes, and osteophytes. Sacroiliitis was recorded according to the New York and Stoke methods. Signs of enthesitis in the iliac crest and disc space narrowing were recorded. Interobserver reliability and intraobserver reproducibility were determined.
Results: 23% of patients had grade 2–4 sacroiliitis (New York criteria) and 14% had syndesmophytes. There was more frequent sacroiliitis (32% v 13%) in uroarthritis than in enteroarthritis, and more syndesmophytes (mean 0.54 v 0.15 per patient; prevalence 24% v 6%, respectively). In other radiological features, no significant differences were present between the groups. In the material as a whole, patients with sacroiliitis of grade 2 or more had significantly less disc space narrowing both in patient comparisons (
2 test) and in numbers of spaces involved (Mann-Whitney test). Interobserver and intraobserver agreement, calculated using Cohen’s 
method, varied from 0.2 to 1.
Conclusions: Syndesmophytes and sacroiliitis are more common in patients with previous uroarthritis than in those with previous enteroarthritis, but radiological findings in lumbosacral spine radiographs are characteristically similar.
Keywords: reactive arthritis; sacroiliac joint; spondyloarthropathies
CiteULike 
Complore 
Connotea 
Del.icio.us 
Digg 
Reddit 
Technorati What's this?
- Full Text
- Full Text (PDF)
-
All Versions of this Article:
ard.2004.027086v1
ard.2004.027086v2
64/6/936 most recent - Submit a response
- Alert me when this article is cited
- Alert me when eLetters are posted
- Alert me if a correction is posted
- Citation Map
Services
- Email this link to a friend
- Similar articles in this journal
- Similar articles in PubMed
- Add article to my folders
- Download to citation manager
- Request Permissions
Citing Articles
Google Scholar
PubMed
Topic Collections
-
Degenerative joint disease
-
Musculoskeletal syndromes
-
Clinical diagnostic tests
-
Radiology (diagnostics)
- Radiology
Bookmark with
Register for free content
The full back archive is now available for all BMJ Journals. Institutional subscribers may access the entire archive as part of their subscription. Personal subscribers will also have access to all content when logged in. Non-subscribers who register have free access to all articles published before 2006 right back to volume 1 issue 1. Register here to access the free archive of all BMJ Journals.
Don't forget to sign up for content alerts so you keep up to date with all the articles as they are published.
