 |
|
|
 |
Prognosis of 5-year Radiographic Erosions of the
Wrist According to Early, Late, and Persistent Wrist Swelling or Tenderness in Patients with Early Rheumatoid Arthritis
REIJO LUUKKAINEN, TUULIKKI SOKKA, HANNU KAUTIAINEN, PEKKA HANNONEN, LEENA LAASONEN, MARJATTA LEIRISALO-REPO, MARKKU KORPELA, HEIKKI JULKUNEN, KARI PUOLAKKA, HARRI BLÅFIELD, MARKKU KAUPPI, and TIMO MÖTTÖNEN, for the FIN-RACo Trial Group ABSTRACT. Objective. To determine whether early inflammatory activity in the first year of disease compared to persistent or later occurrence of swelling or tenderness in the wrist joints is associated with 5-year erosions in the same joint in patients with early rheumatoid arthritis (RA). Methods. A cohort of 195 patients with early active RA was enrolled in the Finnish RA Combination Trial. Swelling and tenderness of wrists were assessed at baseline and at 3, 6, 12, 24, 36, and 48 months. Radiographs of the wrists were taken at the baseline and at 5 years. The 237 wrist joints of 125 patients without erosions at baseline were classified according to wrist swelling, i.e., I: never swollen; II: swollen during first year only; III: swollen during the second to fourth year only; and IV: swollen during the first year and followup, and similarly according to tenderness. Results. Thirty percent of the wrists were never swollen in all clinical examinations; 43% were swollen only during the first year; 11% were not swollen in the first year, but were swollen at some time during 24–48 months; and 16% of wrists were swollen during the first year and at some time during 24–48 months. At 5 years, 64% of 237 wrists remained free of erosions. Erosions developed in 82% of wrists that were swollen during both the first year and 24–48 months, versus 56% of wrists that were not swollen at first year but were swollen during 24–48 months, 31% of wrists that were swollen during the first year only, and 11% of wrists that were never swollen. Similar results were seen for joint tenderness. Conclusion. Wrist swelling during the first year only is associated with less future wrist radiographic damage than persistent swelling or swelling only during the followup. Our results emphasize the value of early and continuous suppression of inflammatory activity in early RA. (First Release Nov 1 2006; J Rheumatol 2007;34:50–3) Key Indexing Terms:
RHEUMATOID ARTHRITIS From the Satakunta Central Hospital, Rauma, Finland. R. Luukkainen, MD, PhD, Satakunta Central Hospital, Rauma; T. Sokka, MD, PhD, Jyväskylä Central Hospital, Jyväskylä, Finland, and Vanderbilt University, Nashville, Tennessee, USA; H. Kautiainen, BA, Rheumatism Foundation Hospital, Heinola; P. Hannonen, MD, PhD, Jyväskylä Central Hospital, Jyväskylä; L. Laasonen, MD, PhD, Helsinki Medical Imaging Center, University of Helsinki, Helsinki; M. Leirisalo-Repo, MD, PhD, Helsinki University Central Hospital; M. Korpela, MD, PhD, Tampere University Hospital, Tampere; H. Julkunen, MD, PhD, Peijas Hospital, Vantaa; K. Puolakka, MD, PhD, Lappeenranta Central Hospital, Lappeenranta; H. Blåfield, MD, Seinäjoki Central Hospital, Seinäjoki; M. Kauppi, MD, PhD, Rheumatism Foundation Hospital, Heinola; T. Möttönen, MD, PhD, Turku University Hospital, Turku, Finland. Address reprint requests to Dr. R. Luukkainen, Department of Rheumatology, Satakunta Central Hospital, 26100 Rauma, Finland. E-mail: reijo.luukkainen@fimnet.fi Accepted for publication August 29, 2006. |
