RT Journal Article
SR Electronic
T1 Histological assessment of the early enthesitis lesion in spondyloarthropathy
JF Annals of the Rheumatic Diseases
JO Ann Rheum Dis
FD BMJ Publishing Group Ltd and European League Against Rheumatism
SP 534
OP 537
DO 10.1136/ard.61.6.534
VO 61
IS 6
A1 D McGonagle
A1 H Marzo-Ortega
A1 P O'Connor
A1 W Gibbon
A1 P Hawkey
A1 K Henshaw
A1 P Emery
YR 2002
UL http://ard.bmj.com/content/61/6/534.abstract
AB Objectives: To describe the histological changes in acute enthesopathy in early spondyloarthropathies (SpA). Methods: Clinically evident acute enthesopathy was confirmed by magnetic resonance imaging and ultrasonography in four cases of plantar fasciitis and one case of patellar tendon enthesitis. Ultrasound guided biopsy of insertional points was carried out with a Jamshedi needle. Control tissue was obtained from two subjects undergoing spinal grafting surgery. Standard histochemistry and immunohistochemistry analysis using the avidin-biotin immunoperoxidase complex method employing markers against CD3, CD8, CD34, and CD68 was used to determine cellular infiltrates at the insertion point. Results: The enthesis architecture was abnormal in the SpA group, with increased vascularity and cellular infiltration compared with normal subjects. The predominant infiltrating cell at the enthesis fibrocartilage was the macrophage, but there was a paucity of lymphocytes at the insertion point. Conclusion: These preliminary findings have implications for a better understanding of the pathology in early SpA.