Superb Microvascular Imaging Is Better Than Power Doppler Ultrasound in Diagnosing Subclinical Synovitis in Patients With Inflammatory Arthritis in Remission.

Objective: The aim of this study was to investigate the value and reliability of superb microvascular imaging (SMI) in detecting subclinical synovial inflammation in patients with inflammatory arthritis.

Methods: All patients with inflammatory arthritis who had achieved clinical remission were retrospectively analyzed and evaluated with SMI and power Doppler ultrasound (PDUS). Subclinical synovitis was graded by a semiquantitative score (0-3) for each imaging method.

The reliability and validity of superb microvascular imaging as a potential disease activity marker in rheumatoid arthritis.

Purpose: Rheumatoid arthritis (RA) is a systemic autoimmune disease of unknown aetiology, that causes progressive and destructive inflammation in the joints. Superb microvascular imaging (SMI), a new ultrasound technique that allows visualizing slow blood flow in synovitis. This study aimed to report the clinical value and utility of the SMI technique and its grading for monitoring RA by determining the correlation with clinical disease activity scores (DAS 28) and power Doppler ultrasound (PDUS).

Physical Activity, Kinesiophobia, Pain Catastrophizing, Body Awareness, Depression and Disease Activity in Patients With Ankylosing Spondylitis and Rheumatoid Arthritis: A Cross-Sectional Explorative Study.

Objective/aim: The aim was to compare the levels of physical activity, kinesiophobia, pain catastrophizing, body awareness, and depression in patients with Ankylosing Spondylitis (AS) and Rheumatoid Arthritis (RA) and to explore the associations between these outcomes and disease activity.

Methods: Seventy-eight patients with AS (n = 30) and RA (n = 48) were included. Outcomes were assessed using the International Physical Activity Questionnaire-Short Form, the Tampa Scale of Kinesiophobia, the Pain Catastrophizing Scale, the Body Awareness Questionnaire, and the Beck Depression Inventory.

Increased epicardial adipose tissue thickness as a sign of subclinical atherosclerosis in patients with rheumatoid arthritis and ıts relationship with disease activity ındices.

Epicardial adipose tissue is a novel cardiometabolic risk factor and indicator of subclinical atherosclerosis. We aimed to evaluate the epicardial adipose tissue thickness in rheumatoid arthritis (RA) patients and its association with disease activity scores. A total of 81 rheumatoid arthritis patients and 70 age- and sex-matched healthy individuals were recruited for this cross-sectional study.

Disseminated Nocardiosis with Ocular Involvement in a Patient with Anca-associated Vasculitis.

A 62-year male patient, diagnosed with antineutrophil cytoplasmic antibody (ANCA)-associated vasculitis (AAV), developed proptosis and decrease in visual acuity while on rituximab treatment. As the ophthalmological examination and imaging studies could not exclude tumour of the orbit, enucleation of the orbit was performed. The histopathology displayed necrosis and inflammation.

Systemic Immune Inflammation Index as a Reliable Disease Activity Marker in Psoriatic Arthritis.

Objective: To assess the utility of systemic immune inflammation index (SII) in predicting disease activity in psoriatic arthritis (PsA) patients.

Study Design: A descriptive study.

Place And Duration Of Study: Dışkapı Yıldırım Beyazıt Research and Training Hospital, Ankara, Turkey, from October 2020 to September 2021.

Indications and risk factors for hospitalization in patients with primary Sjögren syndrome: experience from a tertiary center in Turkey.

Objective: In this study, it was aimed to reveal the hospitalization reasons for patients diagnosed with primary Sjögren syndrome (pSS) and potentially associated factors in a tertiary health center.

Method: One hundred and sixty-three pSS patients who regularly attended their follow-ups between January 2010 and May 2021 were included in the study. These patients' reasons for hospitalization, duration of hospitalization, and numbers of presenting to the hospital were recorded.

High mobility group box-1 levels may be associated with disease activity of Behcet's disease.

Background: High mobility group box- 1 (HMGB- 1) is a nuclear protein acting as a proinflammatory molecule. The serum HMGB- 1 levels were found elevated in chronic inflammatory diseases. In this cross-sectional study, serum HMGB- 1 levels in Behcet's disease (BD) patients and healthy controls (HC) were studied.

Can Subclinical Atherosclerosis Be Assessed More Precisely in Behçet Syndrome Patients by Using a Particular Cutoff Value for Carotid Intima Media Thickness?

Objective: Behçet syndrome (BS) is a multisystemic chronic vasculitic disease. Among previous studies, although there are some that showed increased risk of subclinical atherosclerosis in BS, there are also others that showed the opposite. The objective of this study is to evaluate subclinical atherosclerosis in BS by using the cutoff value for intima-media thickness in the 2013 European Society of Cardiology/European Society of Hypertension guideline.

Imaging modalities used in diagnosis and follow-up of patients with Takayasu’s arteritis.

Background/aim: Takayasu’s arteritis (TA) is a rare, large-vessel vasculitis of unknown etiology, affecting aortic arch, and its main branches. Noninvasive imaging methods are frequently used in diagnosis and follow-up in Takayasu’s arteritis. Studies investigating optimal timing of follow up imaging are rare.

Early onset primary Sjögren syndrome, clinical and laboratory characteristics.

Introduction/objectives: Primary Sjögren syndrome (pSS) is usually encountered between the fourth and sixth decades. It is known that the age of onset in autoimmune diseases may affect the clinical features. In this study, we aimed to investigate the clinical and laboratory characteristics of early onset pSS patients.

Association of simple hematological parameters with disease manifestations, activity, and severity in patients with systemic sclerosis.

Introduction/objectives: Neutrophil-to-lymphocyte ratio (NLR), monocyte-to-lymphocyte ratio (MLR), mean platelet volume (MPV), and red cell distribution width (RDW) may potentially reflect inflammatory status in systemic autoimmune diseases. The aim of this study is to investigate the association between these proposed markers and disease manifestations, activity, and severity in systemic sclerosis (SSc).

Method: We conducted a cross-sectional study of 69 systemic sclerosis (SSc) patients and 50 healthy volunteers in a single center.

Methodology of a new inflammatory arthritis registry: TReasure.

Background/aim: The TReasure registry, created in 2017, is an observational multicenter cohort that includes inflammatory arthritis patients. This article reviews the methodology and objectives of the TReasure registry established to collect data from rheumatoid arthritis (RA) and spondyloarthritis (SpA) patients.

Methodology: Fifteen rheumatology centers in Turkey will contribute data to the TReasure database.