Reinhard Meier MD, Presenter: Nothing to Disclose

Klaus Thuermel, Abstract Co-Author: Nothing to Disclose

Peter B. Noel MS, Abstract Co-Author: Nothing to Disclose

Franziska Dorn, Abstract Co-Author: Nothing to Disclose

Ernst J. Rummeny MD, Abstract Co-Author: Nothing to Disclose

Klaus Woertler MD, Abstract Co-Author: Nothing to Disclose

Philipp Moog, Abstract Co-Author: Nothing to Disclose

Martin Henninger, Abstract Co-Author: Nothing to Disclose

Moritz Wildgruber MD, PhD, Abstract Co-Author: Nothing to Disclose

To evaluate an Indocyanine Green (ICG)-enhanced optical imaging (OI) system for detection of active inflammation in patients with rheumatoid arthritis in comparison to MRI.

Methods and Materials: 10 Patients (70% female, mean age = 52.2) with clinical suspicion of active inflammation in rheumatoid arthritis were examined with a clinically new available ICG-enhanced optical imaging system (mivenion GmbH, Berlin, Germany). The degree of inflammation in the metacarpophalangeal, proximal and distal interphalangeal joints of both hands was graded objectively by three independent radiologists on a 4-point-ordinate scale (0: no inflammation, 1: mild, 2: moderate, 3: severe) according to the OMERACT RAMRIS score. Results were correlated with MRI (3T Verio, Siemens, Erlangen, Germany) as standard of reference.

Of the 280 joints of the 10 patients evaluated, 253 (89.3%) joints showed in OI no inflammation, while 27 (10.7%) joints showed mild, moderate and severe inflammation. In MRI 255 (90.2%) joints showed no inflammation, while 25 (9.8%) joints showed active inflammation (grade 1-3). Using MRI as standard of reference, OI had a sensitivity of 84%, a specificity of 97.6%, an accuracy of 96.4%, a positive predictive value of 77.8% and a negative predictive value of 98.4% for detection of active inflammation in patients with RA.

Our preliminary data shows, that optical imaging allows for detection of active inflammation in patients with rheumatoid arthritis. While the performance of OI up to now is slightly inferior to MRI, it might be nevertheless of substantial added value to clinical examination due to its non-invasiveness, low costs and easy availability.

OI is a fast, inexpensive, non-invasive and non-ionizing imaging modality which has potential to be helpful for early detection of active inflammation in patients with rheumatoid arthritis.

Meier, R, Thuermel, K, Noel, P, Dorn, F, Rummeny, E, Woertler, K, Moog, P, Henninger, M, Wildgruber, M, Preliminary Results: Detection of Active Inflammation in Rheumatoid Arthritis by Means of a 2D Optical Imaging System in Comparison to MRI.  Radiological Society of North America 2010 Scientific Assembly and Annual Meeting, November 28 - December 3, 2010 ,Chicago IL. http://archive.rsna.org/2010/9005601.html