title: Effectiveness of whole-body magnetic resonance imaging for the efficacy of biologic anti-rheumatic drugs in patients with rheumatoid arthritis: A retrospective pilot study.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  To evaluate the scoring of whole-body magnetic resonance imaging (WBMRI) for efficacy assessment in rheumatoid arthritis (RA) patients receiving biological disease-modifying anti-rheumatic drugs (bDMARDs).
  
  
  METHODS
  Thirty consecutive RA patients receiving bDMARDs were included in this retrospective study. Contrast WBMRI was performed before and 1 year after bDMARDs initiation.
  
  
  RESULTS
  At baseline, mean age was 57.1 years and mean disease duration was 3.0 years. Median disease activity score in 28 joints improved from 5.1 to 2.1. Treatment with bDMARDs improved mean whole-body synovitis score from 31.2 to 23.2 and median whole-body bone-edema score from 11 to 3. Whole-body bone-erosion score improved in seven patients and deteriorated in 17 patients. Logistic regression analysis identified whole-body synovitis score as a poor prognostic factor for whole-body bone-erosion progression. Bone-edema score in individual bones was identified as a poor prognostic factor for the progression of bone-erosion. Changes in hand synovitis score correlated with those of other joints, but neither changes in bone-edema nor erosion score of hands correlated with those of other joints in WBMRI.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  WBMRI scoring may be a novel useful tool to evaluate the efficacy of anti-rheumatic drugs, as well as a potential predictor of joint prognosis, in patients with RA.
authors.affiliation: a Division of Rheumatology, Endocrinology and Nephrology , Hokkaido University Graduate School of Medicine , Sapporo , Japan.
authors.forename: Michihito
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Kono
authors.affiliation: b Faculty of Health Sciences , Hokkaido University , Sapporo , Japan.
authors.forename: Tamotsu
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Kamishima
authors.affiliation: a Division of Rheumatology, Endocrinology and Nephrology , Hokkaido University Graduate School of Medicine , Sapporo , Japan.
authors.forename: Shinsuke
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Yasuda
authors.affiliation: c Department of Radiation Medicine , Hokkaido University Graduate School of Medicine , Sapporo , Japan.
authors.forename: Keita
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Sakamoto
authors.affiliation: a Division of Rheumatology, Endocrinology and Nephrology , Hokkaido University Graduate School of Medicine , Sapporo , Japan.
authors.forename: Sawako
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Abe
authors.affiliation: a Division of Rheumatology, Endocrinology and Nephrology , Hokkaido University Graduate School of Medicine , Sapporo , Japan.
authors.forename: Atsushi
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Noguchi
authors.affiliation: a Division of Rheumatology, Endocrinology and Nephrology , Hokkaido University Graduate School of Medicine , Sapporo , Japan.
authors.forename: Toshiyuki
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Watanabe
authors.affiliation: a Division of Rheumatology, Endocrinology and Nephrology , Hokkaido University Graduate School of Medicine , Sapporo , Japan.
authors.forename: Yuka
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Shimizu
authors.affiliation: a Division of Rheumatology, Endocrinology and Nephrology , Hokkaido University Graduate School of Medicine , Sapporo , Japan.
authors.forename: Kenji
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Oku
authors.affiliation: a Division of Rheumatology, Endocrinology and Nephrology , Hokkaido University Graduate School of Medicine , Sapporo , Japan.
authors.forename: Toshiyuki
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Bohgaki
authors.affiliation: a Division of Rheumatology, Endocrinology and Nephrology , Hokkaido University Graduate School of Medicine , Sapporo , Japan.
authors.forename: Olga
authors.initials: O
authors.lastname: Amengual
authors.affiliation: a Division of Rheumatology, Endocrinology and Nephrology , Hokkaido University Graduate School of Medicine , Sapporo , Japan.
authors.forename: Tetsuya
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Horita
authors.affiliation: a Division of Rheumatology, Endocrinology and Nephrology , Hokkaido University Graduate School of Medicine , Sapporo , Japan.
authors.forename: Tatsuya
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Atsumi
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D018501:Antirheumatic Agents / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D001172:Arthritis, Rheumatoid / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging* / Q000188:drug therapy; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008279:Magnetic Resonance Imaging; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D010865:Pilot Projects; D012189:Retrospective Studies
chemical_list: D018501:Antirheumatic Agents
keywords: Bone edema; arthritis; bone; erosion; imaging; magnetic; resonance; rheumatoid; synovitis; whole-body