title: Capillaroscopic pattern in inflammatory arthritis.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  There are limited data about the role of nailfold capillaroscopy in inflammatory arthritis.
  
  
  OBJECTIVE
  To study the role of capillaroscopy in inflammatory arthritis-rheumatoid arthritis (RA), psoriatic arthritis (PsA) and early arthritis.
  
  
  METHODS
  Patients from the following groups were included in the study: 62 patients with RA; 34 patients with PsA with involvement of the joints of the hands; 9 women with early arthritis. Nailfold capillaroscopy was performed with videocapillaroscope.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Raynaud's phenomenon (RP) was found in 30.6% (19/62) of RA patients, in 32.4% (11/34) of PsA patients and 44.4%, (4/9) of cases with early arthritis. The most frequent found capillaroscopic changes in RA patients were presence of elongated capillaries in 58% of cases (36/62) and prominent subpapillary plexus in 69% (43/62). Dilated capillaries were found in 78.9% (15/19) of patients with secondary RP and in 62.8% (27/43) of those without RP. "Scleroderma-like" capillaroscopic pattern was observed with low frequency in RA patients (14.5%/9/62). "Scleroderma-like" capillaroscopic pattern was also found in 11.1% (1/9) in the group of patients with early arthritis. The low frequency of the last type of capillaroscopic pattern in RA requires patients with such changes to be observed during regular follow-up for the development of systemic rheumatic disease different from inflammatory arthritis. In patients with PsA capillaries with specific morphology (tight terminal convolutions) were found in 58.8% (20/34) of cases.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Results from the present study confirm the necessity for inclusion of the nailfold capillaroscopy in the diagnostic algorithm in patients with inflammatory arthritis.
authors.affiliation: Medical University, Plovdiv, Department for Propedeutics in Internal Medicine, Bulgaria. sevdalina_n@abv.bg
authors.forename: Sevdalina Nikolova
authors.initials: SN
authors.lastname: Lambova
authors.forename: Ulf
authors.initials: U
authors.lastname: Müller-Ladner
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D001168:Arthritis / Q000503:physiopathology*; D015535:Arthritis, Psoriatic / Q000503:physiopathology*; D001172:Arthritis, Rheumatoid / Q000503:physiopathology*; D002196:Capillaries / Q000503:physiopathology*; D016022:Case-Control Studies; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007249:Inflammation; D008297:Male; D020678:Microscopic Angioscopy / Q000379:methods*; D008875:Middle Aged; D011928:Raynaud Disease