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Use of Thermographic Criteria to Identify Raynaud's Phenomenon in a Population Setting
LYNN F. CHERKAS, LIISA CARTER, TIM D. SPECTOR, KEVIN J. HOWELL, CAROL M. BLACK, and ALEX J. MacGREGOR
ABSTRACT.
Methods. One hundred seventy-five patients with RP and 404 controls were subjected to a 15°C, 60 s cold challenge test. All participants were women. Digital temperature measurements were taken at baseline, immediately postimmersion, and 10 min after immersion using a portable radiometer. Results. Baseline skin temperature was a significant predictor of RP; however, the fall in temperature on immersion and the subsequent rewarming rate provided no additional information. Conclusion. Baseline skin temperature can help to predict the occurrence of RP in patients drawn from the general population, but has relatively low discriminatory power. The cold challenge test itself is of limited additional value for classification. Although objective temperature measurements show little power overall to discriminate between RP and non-RP patients, detecting low baseline digital temperature may be a useful adjunct to clinical history in classifying the disease. (J Rheumatol 2003;30:720-2) Key Indexing Terms:
THERMOGRAPHY
From the Twin Research and Genetic Epidemiology Unit, St. Thomas' Hospital, and the Department of Rheumatology, Royal Free Hospital, London, England. Supported by the Arthritis Research Campaign (UK). A.J. MacGregor is an ARC Senior Fellow. L.F. Cherkas, DPhil, Genetic Analyst; L. Carter, RN, Research Nurse; A.J. MacGregor, MD, ARC Senior Fellow, Twin Research and Genetic Epidemiology Unit, St. Thomas' Hospital; T.D. Spector, MD, Consultant Rheumatologist; K.J. Howell, MSc, Clinical Scientist; C.M. Black, MD, Professor of Rheumatology, Department of Rheumatology, Royal Free Hospital. Address reprint requests to Dr. A.J. MacGregor, Twin Research and Genetic Epidemiology Unit, St. Thomas' Hospital, Lambeth Palace Road, London, SE1 7EH, UK. Submitted March 7, 2002; revision accepted September 19, 2002. |