Examination of intra and interrater reliability with a new ultrasonographic reference atlas for scoring of synovitis in patients with rheumatoid arthritis.

Objective: Synovitis in patients with rheumatoid arthritis (RA) may be scored semiquantitatively (0-3) for B-mode (BM) and power Doppler (PD) ultrasonography. The objective was to assess the reliability of BM and PD examinations with a novel ultrasonographic atlas as reference.

Methods: Representative ultrasound images (including scores 0-3) of BM and PD from 24 different joints were collected to develop an ultrasonographic atlas.