The value of contrast-enhanced ultrasound in synovial pathotypes of rheumatoid arthritis: an exploratory study.

OBJECTIVE

To analyze the differences in contrast-enhanced ultrasound (CEUS) patterns among synovial pathotypes in rheumatoid arthritis (RA), aiming to provide a non-invasive basis for differentiating RA subtypes.

MATERIALS AND METHODS

A total of 151 patients with RA (involving 151 joints) were included and underwent gray-scale ultrasound, Power Doppler ultrasound (PDUS), CEUS, and ultrasound-guided synovial biopsy sequentially. The synovial tissues were classified into three pathological types by immunohistochemistry, including lympho-myeloid, diffuse-myeloid, and pauci-immune. This study analyzed the differences in ultrasound features among different synovial pathotypes and proposed five distinct synovial vascular enhancement patterns. Variables with correlations > 0.3 were selected to construct three classification models, namely Model 1 (Clinical variables), Model 2 (Clinical-PDUS), and Model 3 (Clinical-PDUS-CEUS).

RESULTS

CEUS synovial vascular enhancement patterns: the pauci-immune predominantly exhibited pattern II (35.7%), the diffuse-myeloid predominantly exhibited pattern IV (42.5%), and the lympho-myeloid predominantly exhibited pattern V (72.0%). Qualitative parameters (enhancement pattern, degree, and range) and quantitative parameters (peak intensity [PI], maximum gradient [MGrad], and wash-out area under the curve [WoAUC]) of CEUS were significantly associated with pathological types (r = 0.426-0.602, all p < 0.001). In differentiating pathological subtypes, Model 3 achieved an AUC of 0.902, which was significantly higher than Model 1 (AUC = 0.728) and Model 2 (AUC = 0.751). However, the diagnostic efficacy for the diffuse-myeloid still needs optimization (AUC = 0.818).

CONCLUSIONS

CEUS features of synovium can help differentiate RA synovial pathotypes and may provide important guidance for the early diagnosis and treatment selection of RA.

KEY POINTS

Question Are there differences between RA synovial pathotype and their corresponding contrast-enhanced (CEUS) findings? Findings Five patterns of synovial vascular enhancement corresponding to pathology types were identified, and a model was constructed. Clinical relevance CEUS synovial qualitative analysis and quantitative parameters can help differentiate RA synovial pathotypes.