Osteoarthritis

The early detection of the clinical expressions of the degenerative and inflammatory rheumatic diseases is fundamental to start adequate therapeutic interventions before the development of irreversible articular and tendinous damage. In this perspective, imaging techniques and particularly ultrasound (US) are important tools to demonstrate the joint and musculoskeletal damage, and to help in the diagnosis and follow-up of the disease. Power Doppler (PD) US provides an estimation of synovial tissue hyperemia and measures the degree of synovial inflammation. In patients with chronic inflammatory arthritis, intra-articular PD signal represents the US finding indicative of “active” synovitis