Musculoskeletal ultrasound (MSUS) is increasingly being used in the evaluation of pediatric musculoskeletal diseases. In order to provide objective assessments of arthritis, reliable MSUS scoring ...systems are needed. Recently, joint-specific scoring systems for arthritis of the pediatric elbow, wrist, and finger joints were proposed by the Childhood Arthritis and Rheumatology Research Alliance (CARRA) MSUS workgroup. This study aimed to assess the reliability of these scoring systems when used by sonographers with different levels of expertise.
Members of the CARRA MSUS workgroup attended training sessions for scoring the elbow, wrist, and finger. Subsequently, scoring exercises of B mode and power Doppler (PD) mode still images for each joint were performed. Interreader reliability was determined using 2-way single-score intraclass correlation coefficients (ICCs) for synovitis and Cohen Formula: see text for tenosynovitis.
Seventeen pediatric rheumatologists with different levels of MSUS expertise (1-15 yrs) completed a 2-hour training session and calibration exercise for each joint. Excellent reliability (ICC > 0.75) was found after the first scoring exercise for all the finger and elbow views evaluated on B mode and PD mode, and for all of the wrist views on B mode. After a second training session and a scoring exercise, the wrist PD mode views reached excellent reliability as well.
The preliminary CARRA MSUS scoring systems for assessing arthritis of the pediatric elbow, wrist, and finger joints demonstrate excellent reliability among pediatric MSUS sonographers with different levels of expertise. With further validation, this reliable joint-specific scoring system could serve as a clinical tool and scientific outcome measure.
Objective
To assess parent perspectives regarding the emotional health impact of juvenile myositis (JM) on patients and families, and to assess preferences for emotional health screening and ...interventions.
Methods
Parents of children and young adults with JM were purposively sampled for participation in focus groups at the Cure JM Foundation National Family Conference in 2018. Groups were stratified by patient age group (6–12, 13–17, and 18–21 years), and conversations were audiorecorded, transcribed verbatim, and co‐coded via content analysis, with subanalysis by age group. A brief survey assessed preferences for specific emotional health interventions.
Results
Forty‐five parents participated in 6 focus groups. Themes emerged within 2 domains: emotional challenges, and screening and interventions. Themes for emotional challenges comprised the impact of JM on: 1) patient emotional health, particularly depression and anxiety; 2) parent emotional health characterized by sadness, grief, anger, guilt, and anxiety; and 3) family dynamics, including significant sibling distress. Subanalysis revealed similar themes across age groups, but the theme of resiliency emerged specifically for young adults. Themes for emotional health screening and interventions indicated potential issues with patient transparency, several barriers to resources, the facilitator role of rheumatology providers, and preferred intervention modalities of online and in‐person resources, with survey responses most strongly supporting child/parent counseling and peer support groups.
Conclusion
JM is associated with intense patient and family distress, although resiliency may emerge by young adulthood. Despite existing barriers, increasing access to counseling, peer support groups, and online resources with rheumatology facilitation may be effective intervention strategies.
Juvenile idiopathic arthritis (JIA) is a heterogeneous group of chronic inflammatory arthritides that if inadeguately treated, may be associated with chronic disability and deformity Early diagnosis ...and treatment initiation is essential in the management of patients with JIA. Conventional means of evaluation of disease presence, disease activity and response to therapy including physical exam, labs and x-rays are at times limited and may be insufficient in making an accurate assessment. Musculoskeletal ultrasound (MSUS) is a well-established modality that is patient and family-friendly, non-invasive, does not reguire sedation and can be performed at the bedside in real-time. MSUS offers information that cannot be attained by standard outcome measures, and may help to advance both diagnosis and treatment of patients with JIA ultimately improving patient outcomes. This review explores the background of MSUS and the current evidence to support its potential role as a diagnostic, disease activity monitoring and interventional tool. Keywords: Juvenile idiopathic arthritis, ultrasound, enthesitis
: This case report describes the development of dependence to phenibut, a gamma-aminobutyric acid-receptor type B agonist, in a patient concurrently being treated with buprenorphine. The patient ...experienced withdrawal symptoms which were successfully treated with a phenobarbital taper based on a protocol to treat sedative use disorder. This case report provided an example of the development of a phenibut use disorder and also brought up a public health question of whether phenibut should therefore be officially classified and monitored.
Abstract
Objective
The clinical decision-making process in paediatric arthritis lacks an objective, reliable bedside imaging tool. The aim of this study was to develop a US scanning protocol and ...assess the reliability of B-mode and Doppler scoring systems for inflammatory lesions of the paediatric ankle.
Methods
As part of the Childhood Arthritis and Rheumatology Research Alliance (CARRA) US group, 19 paediatric rheumatologists through a comprehensive literature review developed a set of standardized views and scoring systems to assess inflammatory lesions of the synovial recesses as well as tendons of the paediatric ankle. Three rounds of scoring of still images were followed by one practical exercise. Agreement among raters was assessed using two-way single score intraclass correlation coefficients (ICC).
Results
Of the 37 initially identified views to assess the presence of ankle synovitis and tenosynovitis, nine views were chosen for each B-mode and Doppler mode semi-quantitative evaluation. Several scoring exercises and iterative modifications resulted in a final highly reliable scoring system: anterior tibiotalar joint ICC: 0.93 (95% CI 0.92, 0.94), talonavicular joint ICC: 0.86 (95% CI 0.81, 0.90), subtalar joint ICC: 0.91 (95% CI 0.88, 0.93) and tendons ICC: 0.96 (95% CI 0.95, 0.97).
Conclusion
A comprehensive and reliable paediatric ankle US scanning protocol and scoring system for the assessment of synovitis and tenosynovitis were successfully developed. Further validation of this scoring system may allow its use as an outcome measure for both clinical and research applications.
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