Background: Joint destruction in rheumatoid arthritis (RA) was until recently seen as an irreversible state. Lately, it was found that repair of bone erosions occurs; however, little is known about its prevalence.

Objective: To investigate the frequency of repair and patients' characteristics associated with repair in an inception cohort.

Patients And Methods: 250 patients with RA, included in the Leiden Early Arthritis Clinic between 1993 and 2000 and treated with conventional disease-modifying antirheumatic drugs, were studied (mean follow-up 10.1 years). Radiographs obtained annually were scored using the Sharp-van der Heijde method, initially aware of the chronology. Patients with a negative change in erosion scores on subsequent radiographs were selected and their series of radiographs were re-scored with concealed time sequence by three readers. Repair was defined as agreement between two readers of a negative change in erosion scores that persisted for at least 2 years.

Results: Repair was identified in 32 joints in 18 patients (7.2%). Patients with repair had a greater prevalence of autoantibodies (rheumatoid arthritis, anti-citrullinated protein antibody) and a higher level of joint destruction. In the joints with repair, arthritis was absent in the 2 years preceding repair.

Conclusions: Repair occurred in 7.2% of the patients with RA, particularly in clinically inactive joints in patients with severe destructive disease.

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http://dx.doi.org/10.1136/ard.2009.108332DOI Listing

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