title: Measurement of joint space width and erosion size.
abstract: Measurement of radiographic abnormalities in metric units has been reported by several investigators during the last 15 years. Measurement of joint space in large joints has been employed in a few trials to evaluate therapy in osteoarthritis. Measurement of joint space width in small joints has been reported by several investigators but has not yet found a place in clinical trials in rheumatoid arthritis or osteoarthritis. We review methods for measuring joint space width in finger, toe, and wrist joints; special attention is given to how the joint edges are found, the method used to measure distance between joint margins, size of an area of the sampled joint, and reproducibility of measurements. Methods for measurement of erosion size, which have had less attention, are briefly discussed.
authors.affiliation: University of Washington School of Medicine, Seattle, WA, USA. johntsharp@worldnet.att.net
authors.forename: John T
authors.initials: JT
authors.lastname: Sharp
authors.forename: Desiree
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: van der Heijde
authors.forename: Jane
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Angwin
authors.forename: Jeff
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Duryea
authors.forename: Heins J Bernelot
authors.initials: HJ
authors.lastname: Moens
authors.forename: Johannes W G
authors.initials: JW
authors.lastname: Jacobs
authors.forename: Jean-Francis
authors.initials: JF
authors.lastname: Maillefert
authors.forename: C Vibeke
authors.initials: CV
authors.lastname: Strand
mesh_terms: D001175:Arthrography; D003936:Diagnosis, Computer-Assisted; D005384:Finger Joint / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging*; D006801:Humans; D015203:Reproducibility of Results; D014033:Toe Joint / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging*; D014955:Wrist Joint / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging*