BACKGROUND Severely elevated intracranial pressure due to various reasons,such as decreased cerebral perfusion,can lead to devastating neurological outcomes,such as brain herniation.Decompression craniectomy is a life...BACKGROUND Severely elevated intracranial pressure due to various reasons,such as decreased cerebral perfusion,can lead to devastating neurological outcomes,such as brain herniation.Decompression craniectomy is a life-saving procedure that is commonly performed for such a critical situation,but the changes in cerebral microvessels after brain herniation and decompression are unclear.Ultrafast power Doppler imaging(uPDI)is a new microvascular imaging technology that utilizes high frame rate plane/diverging wave transmission and advanced clutter filters.uPDI significantly improves Doppler sensitivity and can detect microvessels,which are usually invisible using traditional ultrasound Doppler imaging.CASE SUMMARY In this report,uPDI was used for the first time to observe the brain blood flow of a hypoperfusion area in a 4-year-old girl who underwent decompression craniectomy due to refractory intracranial hypertension(ICP)after malignant brain tumor surgery.B-mode imaging was used to verify the increased densities of the cerebral cortex and basal ganglia that were observed by computed tomography.CONCLUSION uPDI showed the local blood supplies and anatomical structures of the patient after decompressive craniectomy.uPDI is potentially a more intuitive and noninvasive method for evaluating the effects of severe ICP on cerebral microvessels.展开更多
The value of color Doppler flow imaging （CDFI） and intravenous contrast-enhanced ultrasound （CEUS） for assessing the transplanted liver and early diagnosing complications by examining hemodynamic changes was discu...The value of color Doppler flow imaging （CDFI） and intravenous contrast-enhanced ultrasound （CEUS） for assessing the transplanted liver and early diagnosing complications by examining hemodynamic changes was discussed. Seventy-five patients with orthotopic liver transplantation （OLT） underwent CDFI. The following parameters were measured： peak systolic velocity （PS）, resistance index （RI） and Doppler perfusion index （DPI） of the hepatic artery （HA）, time average velocity （TAV） of portal vein （PV） and velocity of hepatic vein （HV） in different stages postoperation, And 11 patients of them received CEUS. Thirty healthy subjects were enrolled as controls, The results showed that： （1） In 23 patients without obvious complications, TAV of PV within 15 days post-operation was significantly higher than in controls （P〈0.05）, PS and DPI of HA within 7 days postoperation were lower, but RI was higher than in controls （P〈0.05）; （2） When the hepatic artery thrombosis （HAT） occurred, PS and DPI of HA were obviously decreased, but TAV of PV significantly increased like a high saw-tooth wave; （3） While rejection occurred, both TAV of PV and PS of HA were decreased with the increase in RI of HA, and the triphasic wave of HV disappeared and displayed as saw-tooth wave; （4） The incidence of biliary complications in liver transplantation was increased when DPI was reduced; （5） Seven cases of hepatic carcinoma relapse after OLT demonstrated hyperecho in the arterial phase and hypoecho in the portal and later phase on CEUS; （6） In 2 cases of HA thrombus, there was no visualized enhancement in arterial phase of CEUS, but enhancement during the portal vein and parenchymal phase. It was concluded that the hemodynamic changes of PV, HA and HV in the transplanted liver are valuable for assessing the transplanted liver and early diagnosing complications on CDFI and CEUS.展开更多
Sometimes endometrial polyps,submucosal myomas,and endometrial cancer show similar findings under ultrasonography.The aim of this study was to assess the antidiastole value of blood flow parameters using three-dimensi...Sometimes endometrial polyps,submucosal myomas,and endometrial cancer show similar findings under ultrasonography.The aim of this study was to assess the antidiastole value of blood flow parameters using three-dimensional(3D)power Doppler ultrasonography angiography(PDA)between endometrial cancer and uterine parenchyma lumps.The data of the blood flow indices in 3D-PDA including the vascularization index(VI),flow index(FI),and vascularization flow index(VFI)in 40 patients with endometrial cancer and 41 patients with uterine parenchyma lumps(endometrial polyps and submucosal myomas)were retrospectively analysed and compared utilizing Virtual Organ Computer-aided AnaLysis(VOCAL)software.The results showed that all the blood flow parameters(VI,FI,VFI)were significantly higher in women with endometrial cancer than in those with uterine parenchyma lumps(P<0.001).The area under the curve of ROC of VI,FI,and VFI was 0.98,0.84,and 0.97,respectively.Thus,the best predictor of endometrial carcinoma was VI with a sensitivity of 97.0% and a specificity of 91.0%.The optimal cutoff value of VI was 4.06%.Our data demonstrated that all of the blood flow signal parameters(including VI,FI,and VFI)in 3D power Doppler ultrasonography had significant antidiastole values between endometrial cancer and uterine parenchyma lumps to assist clinicians in properly diagnosing patients.展开更多
Ankle involvement is frequent in patients with inflammatory rheumatic diseases, but accurate evaluation by physical examination is often difficult because of the complex anatomical structures of the ankle. Over the la...Ankle involvement is frequent in patients with inflammatory rheumatic diseases, but accurate evaluation by physical examination is often difficult because of the complex anatomical structures of the ankle. Over the last decade, ultrasound(US) has become a practical imaging tool for the assessment of articular and periarticular pathologies, including joint synovitis, tenosynovitis, and enthesitis in rheumatic diseases. Progress in power Doppler(PD) technology has enabled evaluation of the strength of ongoing inflammation. PDUS is very useful for identifying the location and kind of pathologies in rheumatic ankles as well as for distinguishing between inflammatory processes and degenerative changes or between active inflammation and residual damage. The aim of this paper is to illustrate the US assessment of ankle lesions in patients with inflammatory rheumatic diseases, including rheumatoid arthritis, spondyloarthritis, and systemic lupus erythematosus, focusing on the utility of PDUS.展开更多
Objective:?The aim of this study is to assess any potential relationship between perifollicular vascularity and occurrence of pregnancy in cases of stimulated IUI cycles using the subjective grading system by 2D trans...Objective:?The aim of this study is to assess any potential relationship between perifollicular vascularity and occurrence of pregnancy in cases of stimulated IUI cycles using the subjective grading system by 2D transvaginal power Doppler ultrasonography.?Design: A prospective cross sectional cohort study. Method: This is a prospective cross-sectional cohort study of 90 stimulated IUI treatment cycles. Selected women were prescribed clomiphene citrate combined with highly purified urinary follicle stimulating hormone. All patients underwent serial transvaginal ultrasound scans starting from day 6 to 7 of the cycle. Perifollicular Doppler blood flows were assessed in dominant follicles ≥18 mm. The patients then were categorized into 3 groups (high vascularity group {G3 & G4}, low vascularity group {G1 & G2} and mixed grades group). Other parameters measured included number of follicles ≥ 18 mm in both ovaries, endometrial thickness and estradiol (E2) level . Human chorionic gonadotropin (hCG) injection 10,000 IU IM was given to the patient when the dominant follicle reached 18 mm in diameter. At that time, the endometrium was evaluated as regards endometrial thickness. IUI was carried out using prepared/“washed” semen (husband). All patients received luteal support in the form of progesterone from day of IUI for 14 days. Serum Β-hCG was estimated 2 weeks after insemination. Results: In this study, from all 90 cases only 8 cases got pregnant with pregnancy rate of 8.88% (6 cases got pregnant in high grade vascularity group;2 cases in mixed grades group and no cases got pregnant?in low grade group). There was statistically significant difference among the 3 groups as regarding?the pregnancy rate (P value = 0.02). There is statistically significant difference in perifollicular resistance index (RI) and pulsatility index (PI) between pregnant and non pregnant cases (P value = 0.016 and 0.047 respectively). In this study, there is no statistically significant difference between pregnant and non pregnant cases as regarding endometrial thickness and E2 level at the day of hCG administration (P value = 0.39 and 0.76 respectively). Conclusion: Perifollicular blood-flow assessment by 2D transvaginal power Doppler is a good predictive for the outcome of stimulated IUI cycles.展开更多
Objective: To assess the preoperative serum levels of vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) in ovarian masses compared to normal controls and to find a correlation between VEGF and Doppler indices in ovarian masse...Objective: To assess the preoperative serum levels of vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) in ovarian masses compared to normal controls and to find a correlation between VEGF and Doppler indices in ovarian masses. Methods: The study was conducted from December 2009 to September 2012 in the oncology and ultrasound units in department of obstetrics and gynecology, Ain Shams University on 150 patients with ovarian masses. During preoperative workup, serum Ca-125 levels and serum VEGF levels were obtained. Ultrasonographic examination included two and three dimensional power Doppler ultrasound (3DPD). Laparotomic approaches were undertaken to obtain the final pathologic results. VEGF was measured in one hundred normal cases as controls. Results: Final ovarian pathology revealed seventy three malignant ovarian masses and seventy seven were benign. Serum Ca-125 levels in malignant cases were higher compared to those in benign cases (p < 0.001). Preoperative serum VEGF revealed higher levels in malignant ovarian masses than benign conditions and normal controls (p < 0.001). Three dimensional power Doppler indices, vascularization index (VI), flow index (FI) and vascularization flow index (VFI), correlated positively with serum VEGF levels. Conclusion: Preoperative serum VEGF revealed higher levels in malignant ovarian masses than benign conditions and normal controls. These levels positively correlated with the Doppler vascular indices of the masses.展开更多
Objective:To study the changes in three-dimensional power Doppler ultrasound features before and after neoadjuvant chemotherapy for cervical cancer and their relationship with malignant molecule expression.Methods: Th...Objective:To study the changes in three-dimensional power Doppler ultrasound features before and after neoadjuvant chemotherapy for cervical cancer and their relationship with malignant molecule expression.Methods: The patients who were diagnosed with cervical cancer and received neoadjuvant chemotherapy in Wuhan Red Cross Hospital between March 2015 and October 2017 were selected as the cervical cancer group, and the patients who received cervical biopsy and were diagnosed with stage I cervical intraepithelial neoplasia by pathological findings during the same period were selected as the control group. Before biopsy, three-dimensional power Doppler ultrasonography was performed to measure VI, FI and VFI;the tissues of cervical cancer group before and after chemotherapy as well as the biopsy tissues of control group were collected to measure the expression of proliferation genes, invasion genes and angiogenesis genes.Results: The VI, FI and VFI levels as well as the Piwil2 gene (Piwil2), CyclinD1, N-Myc downstream regulated gene 3 (NDRG3), CXC chemokine ligand 5 (CXCL5), cathepsin-L (CAT-L), EGF-containing fibulin-like extracellular matrix protein 1 (EFEMP1), angiotensin (Ang)1, Ang2 and angiopoietin-like protein 4 (ANGPTL4) mRNA expression levels in the tissues of cervical cancer group before and after chemotherapy were all significantly higher than those of control group whereas the thrombospondin 2 (THBS2), Smac gene (Smac), large tumor suppressor kinase 1 (LATS1), reversion-inducing-cysteine-rich protein with kazal motifs (RECK) and plas minogen activator inhibitor 1 (PAI-1) mRNA expression levels in the tissues were all significantly lower than those of control group, and the VI, FI and VFI levels as well as the Piwil2, CyclinD1, NDRG3, CXCL5, CAT-L, EFEMP1, Ang1, Ang2 and ANGPTL4 mRNA expression levels in the tissues of cervical cancer group after chemotherapy were all significantly lower than those before chemotherapy whereas the THBS2, Smac, LATS1, RECK and PAI-1 mRNA expression levels were all significantly higher than those before chemotherapy;the VI, FI and VFI levels in cervical cancer tissues were positively correlated with the Piwil2, CyclinD1, NDRG3, CXCL5, CAT-L, EFEMP1, Ang1, Ang2 and ANGPTL4 mRNA expression levels, and negatively correlated with the THBS2, Smac, LATS1, RECK and PAI-1 mRNA expression levels.Conclusion: The changes in the three-dimensional power Doppler ultrasound parameters before and after neoadjuvant chemotherapy for cervical cancer can reflect the changes in proliferation, invasion and angiogenesis gene expression in the lesions.展开更多
Rheumatoid arthritis is a chronic multisystem disease of unknown cause. The characteristic feature of RA is persistent inflammatory synovitis. The natural history of disease is such that the early months of the diseas...Rheumatoid arthritis is a chronic multisystem disease of unknown cause. The characteristic feature of RA is persistent inflammatory synovitis. The natural history of disease is such that the early months of the disease are critical period during which reversible joint damage occurs. So early diagnosis of RA and appropriate drug application is the only way to save a patient from this crippling disease. In India, the cost of investigations is a significant factor for most of the patients. Ultrasonography or Power Doppler Ultra Sound (PDUS) has the advantage of being economic in spite of its sensitivity in assessing both inflammatory and destructive changes. The aim of the present study was to evaluate the diagnostic efficiency of PDUS in early rheumatoid arthritis. The study was performed with the patients attending Rheumatology Clinic. A total number of 106 patients of clinically suspected rheumatoid arthritis were studied as per selection criteria. Radiological examinations of hands were done by digital radiography and PDUS in a group of 53 patients, assessment of foot changes by PDUS and Digital Radiography were done in another similar group of 53 patients. Final diagnosis by ACR EULAR-2010 criteria is done for all the patients. The comparative study reveals that synovial vascularity as demonstrated by PDUS is much more effective in diagnosing early rheumatoid arthritis, both in hand and in feet than digital radiograph. PDUS of feet may yield earlier and better findings than hands, which is conventionally used in patients suffering from early rheumatoid arthritis.展开更多
文摘BACKGROUND Severely elevated intracranial pressure due to various reasons,such as decreased cerebral perfusion,can lead to devastating neurological outcomes,such as brain herniation.Decompression craniectomy is a life-saving procedure that is commonly performed for such a critical situation,but the changes in cerebral microvessels after brain herniation and decompression are unclear.Ultrafast power Doppler imaging(uPDI)is a new microvascular imaging technology that utilizes high frame rate plane/diverging wave transmission and advanced clutter filters.uPDI significantly improves Doppler sensitivity and can detect microvessels,which are usually invisible using traditional ultrasound Doppler imaging.CASE SUMMARY In this report,uPDI was used for the first time to observe the brain blood flow of a hypoperfusion area in a 4-year-old girl who underwent decompression craniectomy due to refractory intracranial hypertension(ICP)after malignant brain tumor surgery.B-mode imaging was used to verify the increased densities of the cerebral cortex and basal ganglia that were observed by computed tomography.CONCLUSION uPDI showed the local blood supplies and anatomical structures of the patient after decompressive craniectomy.uPDI is potentially a more intuitive and noninvasive method for evaluating the effects of severe ICP on cerebral microvessels.
文摘The value of color Doppler flow imaging （CDFI） and intravenous contrast-enhanced ultrasound （CEUS） for assessing the transplanted liver and early diagnosing complications by examining hemodynamic changes was discussed. Seventy-five patients with orthotopic liver transplantation （OLT） underwent CDFI. The following parameters were measured： peak systolic velocity （PS）, resistance index （RI） and Doppler perfusion index （DPI） of the hepatic artery （HA）, time average velocity （TAV） of portal vein （PV） and velocity of hepatic vein （HV） in different stages postoperation, And 11 patients of them received CEUS. Thirty healthy subjects were enrolled as controls, The results showed that： （1） In 23 patients without obvious complications, TAV of PV within 15 days post-operation was significantly higher than in controls （P〈0.05）, PS and DPI of HA within 7 days postoperation were lower, but RI was higher than in controls （P〈0.05）; （2） When the hepatic artery thrombosis （HAT） occurred, PS and DPI of HA were obviously decreased, but TAV of PV significantly increased like a high saw-tooth wave; （3） While rejection occurred, both TAV of PV and PS of HA were decreased with the increase in RI of HA, and the triphasic wave of HV disappeared and displayed as saw-tooth wave; （4） The incidence of biliary complications in liver transplantation was increased when DPI was reduced; （5） Seven cases of hepatic carcinoma relapse after OLT demonstrated hyperecho in the arterial phase and hypoecho in the portal and later phase on CEUS; （6） In 2 cases of HA thrombus, there was no visualized enhancement in arterial phase of CEUS, but enhancement during the portal vein and parenchymal phase. It was concluded that the hemodynamic changes of PV, HA and HV in the transplanted liver are valuable for assessing the transplanted liver and early diagnosing complications on CDFI and CEUS.
基金This research was supported by grants from the National Natural Science Foundation of China(No.81501530)Hubei Province Health and Family Planning Scientific Research Project(No.WJ2019M130).
文摘Sometimes endometrial polyps,submucosal myomas,and endometrial cancer show similar findings under ultrasonography.The aim of this study was to assess the antidiastole value of blood flow parameters using three-dimensional(3D)power Doppler ultrasonography angiography(PDA)between endometrial cancer and uterine parenchyma lumps.The data of the blood flow indices in 3D-PDA including the vascularization index(VI),flow index(FI),and vascularization flow index(VFI)in 40 patients with endometrial cancer and 41 patients with uterine parenchyma lumps(endometrial polyps and submucosal myomas)were retrospectively analysed and compared utilizing Virtual Organ Computer-aided AnaLysis(VOCAL)software.The results showed that all the blood flow parameters(VI,FI,VFI)were significantly higher in women with endometrial cancer than in those with uterine parenchyma lumps(P<0.001).The area under the curve of ROC of VI,FI,and VFI was 0.98,0.84,and 0.97,respectively.Thus,the best predictor of endometrial carcinoma was VI with a sensitivity of 97.0% and a specificity of 91.0%.The optimal cutoff value of VI was 4.06%.Our data demonstrated that all of the blood flow signal parameters(including VI,FI,and VFI)in 3D power Doppler ultrasonography had significant antidiastole values between endometrial cancer and uterine parenchyma lumps to assist clinicians in properly diagnosing patients.
文摘Ankle involvement is frequent in patients with inflammatory rheumatic diseases, but accurate evaluation by physical examination is often difficult because of the complex anatomical structures of the ankle. Over the last decade, ultrasound(US) has become a practical imaging tool for the assessment of articular and periarticular pathologies, including joint synovitis, tenosynovitis, and enthesitis in rheumatic diseases. Progress in power Doppler(PD) technology has enabled evaluation of the strength of ongoing inflammation. PDUS is very useful for identifying the location and kind of pathologies in rheumatic ankles as well as for distinguishing between inflammatory processes and degenerative changes or between active inflammation and residual damage. The aim of this paper is to illustrate the US assessment of ankle lesions in patients with inflammatory rheumatic diseases, including rheumatoid arthritis, spondyloarthritis, and systemic lupus erythematosus, focusing on the utility of PDUS.
文摘Objective:?The aim of this study is to assess any potential relationship between perifollicular vascularity and occurrence of pregnancy in cases of stimulated IUI cycles using the subjective grading system by 2D transvaginal power Doppler ultrasonography.?Design: A prospective cross sectional cohort study. Method: This is a prospective cross-sectional cohort study of 90 stimulated IUI treatment cycles. Selected women were prescribed clomiphene citrate combined with highly purified urinary follicle stimulating hormone. All patients underwent serial transvaginal ultrasound scans starting from day 6 to 7 of the cycle. Perifollicular Doppler blood flows were assessed in dominant follicles ≥18 mm. The patients then were categorized into 3 groups (high vascularity group {G3 & G4}, low vascularity group {G1 & G2} and mixed grades group). Other parameters measured included number of follicles ≥ 18 mm in both ovaries, endometrial thickness and estradiol (E2) level . Human chorionic gonadotropin (hCG) injection 10,000 IU IM was given to the patient when the dominant follicle reached 18 mm in diameter. At that time, the endometrium was evaluated as regards endometrial thickness. IUI was carried out using prepared/“washed” semen (husband). All patients received luteal support in the form of progesterone from day of IUI for 14 days. Serum Β-hCG was estimated 2 weeks after insemination. Results: In this study, from all 90 cases only 8 cases got pregnant with pregnancy rate of 8.88% (6 cases got pregnant in high grade vascularity group;2 cases in mixed grades group and no cases got pregnant?in low grade group). There was statistically significant difference among the 3 groups as regarding?the pregnancy rate (P value = 0.02). There is statistically significant difference in perifollicular resistance index (RI) and pulsatility index (PI) between pregnant and non pregnant cases (P value = 0.016 and 0.047 respectively). In this study, there is no statistically significant difference between pregnant and non pregnant cases as regarding endometrial thickness and E2 level at the day of hCG administration (P value = 0.39 and 0.76 respectively). Conclusion: Perifollicular blood-flow assessment by 2D transvaginal power Doppler is a good predictive for the outcome of stimulated IUI cycles.
文摘Objective: To assess the preoperative serum levels of vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) in ovarian masses compared to normal controls and to find a correlation between VEGF and Doppler indices in ovarian masses. Methods: The study was conducted from December 2009 to September 2012 in the oncology and ultrasound units in department of obstetrics and gynecology, Ain Shams University on 150 patients with ovarian masses. During preoperative workup, serum Ca-125 levels and serum VEGF levels were obtained. Ultrasonographic examination included two and three dimensional power Doppler ultrasound (3DPD). Laparotomic approaches were undertaken to obtain the final pathologic results. VEGF was measured in one hundred normal cases as controls. Results: Final ovarian pathology revealed seventy three malignant ovarian masses and seventy seven were benign. Serum Ca-125 levels in malignant cases were higher compared to those in benign cases (p < 0.001). Preoperative serum VEGF revealed higher levels in malignant ovarian masses than benign conditions and normal controls (p < 0.001). Three dimensional power Doppler indices, vascularization index (VI), flow index (FI) and vascularization flow index (VFI), correlated positively with serum VEGF levels. Conclusion: Preoperative serum VEGF revealed higher levels in malignant ovarian masses than benign conditions and normal controls. These levels positively correlated with the Doppler vascular indices of the masses.
文摘Objective:To study the changes in three-dimensional power Doppler ultrasound features before and after neoadjuvant chemotherapy for cervical cancer and their relationship with malignant molecule expression.Methods: The patients who were diagnosed with cervical cancer and received neoadjuvant chemotherapy in Wuhan Red Cross Hospital between March 2015 and October 2017 were selected as the cervical cancer group, and the patients who received cervical biopsy and were diagnosed with stage I cervical intraepithelial neoplasia by pathological findings during the same period were selected as the control group. Before biopsy, three-dimensional power Doppler ultrasonography was performed to measure VI, FI and VFI;the tissues of cervical cancer group before and after chemotherapy as well as the biopsy tissues of control group were collected to measure the expression of proliferation genes, invasion genes and angiogenesis genes.Results: The VI, FI and VFI levels as well as the Piwil2 gene (Piwil2), CyclinD1, N-Myc downstream regulated gene 3 (NDRG3), CXC chemokine ligand 5 (CXCL5), cathepsin-L (CAT-L), EGF-containing fibulin-like extracellular matrix protein 1 (EFEMP1), angiotensin (Ang)1, Ang2 and angiopoietin-like protein 4 (ANGPTL4) mRNA expression levels in the tissues of cervical cancer group before and after chemotherapy were all significantly higher than those of control group whereas the thrombospondin 2 (THBS2), Smac gene (Smac), large tumor suppressor kinase 1 (LATS1), reversion-inducing-cysteine-rich protein with kazal motifs (RECK) and plas minogen activator inhibitor 1 (PAI-1) mRNA expression levels in the tissues were all significantly lower than those of control group, and the VI, FI and VFI levels as well as the Piwil2, CyclinD1, NDRG3, CXCL5, CAT-L, EFEMP1, Ang1, Ang2 and ANGPTL4 mRNA expression levels in the tissues of cervical cancer group after chemotherapy were all significantly lower than those before chemotherapy whereas the THBS2, Smac, LATS1, RECK and PAI-1 mRNA expression levels were all significantly higher than those before chemotherapy;the VI, FI and VFI levels in cervical cancer tissues were positively correlated with the Piwil2, CyclinD1, NDRG3, CXCL5, CAT-L, EFEMP1, Ang1, Ang2 and ANGPTL4 mRNA expression levels, and negatively correlated with the THBS2, Smac, LATS1, RECK and PAI-1 mRNA expression levels.Conclusion: The changes in the three-dimensional power Doppler ultrasound parameters before and after neoadjuvant chemotherapy for cervical cancer can reflect the changes in proliferation, invasion and angiogenesis gene expression in the lesions.
文摘Rheumatoid arthritis is a chronic multisystem disease of unknown cause. The characteristic feature of RA is persistent inflammatory synovitis. The natural history of disease is such that the early months of the disease are critical period during which reversible joint damage occurs. So early diagnosis of RA and appropriate drug application is the only way to save a patient from this crippling disease. In India, the cost of investigations is a significant factor for most of the patients. Ultrasonography or Power Doppler Ultra Sound (PDUS) has the advantage of being economic in spite of its sensitivity in assessing both inflammatory and destructive changes. The aim of the present study was to evaluate the diagnostic efficiency of PDUS in early rheumatoid arthritis. The study was performed with the patients attending Rheumatology Clinic. A total number of 106 patients of clinically suspected rheumatoid arthritis were studied as per selection criteria. Radiological examinations of hands were done by digital radiography and PDUS in a group of 53 patients, assessment of foot changes by PDUS and Digital Radiography were done in another similar group of 53 patients. Final diagnosis by ACR EULAR-2010 criteria is done for all the patients. The comparative study reveals that synovial vascularity as demonstrated by PDUS is much more effective in diagnosing early rheumatoid arthritis, both in hand and in feet than digital radiograph. PDUS of feet may yield earlier and better findings than hands, which is conventionally used in patients suffering from early rheumatoid arthritis.
