© 1989 British Society for Rheumatology
research-article |
IMMUNOHISTOLOGICAL FEATURES IN THE SYNOVIUM OBTAINED FROM CLINICALLY UNINVOLVED KNEE JOINTS OF PATIENTS WITH RHEUMATOID ARTHRITIS
University College Dublin, Department of Rheumatology & Histopathology, St. Vincent's Hospital Elm Park, Dublin 4, Ireland and University of Dublin, Department of Immunology, St. Jarnu's Hospital Dublin 8, Ireland
Correspondence to:
Correspondence to Dr. Bresnihan, St. Vincent's Hospital, Elm Park, Dublin 4, Ireland
The spectrum of immunohistological change in the affected joints of patients with rheumatoid arthritis has been well described. In this study, the immunohistological features in synovial membrane obtained from apparently uninvolved knee joints of 16 patients with active untreated rheumatoid arthritis were examined and compared to tissue from control subjects. Synovial tissue was obtained by needle biopsy. Hyperplasia of the synovial lining layer, present in 69%, was the most frequently observed abnormality in synovium obtained from uninvolved joints. Perivascular mononuclear cell infiltration was present in 31% and consisted predominantly of helper T-cells. Increased vascularity and fibrin deposition were not notable features. Clinically overt synovitis emerged in only two patients during a follow-up period of up to 36 months. In conclusion, a considerable degree of histological change was observed in the apparently uninvolved knee joints of patients with active rheumatoid arthritis. The presence of subclinical synovitis challenges current concepts of disease activity and clinical remission. Further study is required to determine whether the features described may be associated with progressive joint erosion.
KEY WORDS: Synovial biopsy, Inflammation, Synovitis, Suppressor/cytotoxic T-cells, Helper T-cells, B-cells
CiteULike 
Connotea 
Del.icio.us What's this?
This article has been cited by other articles:
|
|
 |
|
  J A Singh, T Arayssi, P Duray, and H R Schumacher Immunohistochemistry of normal human knee synovium: a quantitative study Ann Rheum Dis, July 1, 2004; 63(7): 785 - 790. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]
|
|
|
|
|
|
B Bresnihan and D Kane Sonography and subclinical synovitis Ann Rheum Dis, April 1, 2004; 63(4): 333 - 334. [Full Text] [PDF]
|
|
|
|
|
|
R J Wakefield, M J Green, H Marzo-Ortega, P G Conaghan, W W Gibbon, D McGonagle, S Proudman, and P Emery Should oligoarthritis be reclassified? Ultrasound reveals a high prevalence of subclinical disease Ann Rheum Dis, April 1, 2004; 63(4): 382 - 385. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]
|
|
|
|
 |
|
 J. M. G. Canvin, S. Bernatsky, C. A. Hitchon, M. Jackson, M. G. Sowa, J. R. Mansfield, H. H. Eysel, H. H. Mantsch, and H. S. El-Gabalawy Infrared spectroscopy: shedding light on synovitis in patients with rheumatoid arthritis Rheumatology, January 1, 2003; 42(1): 76 - 82. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]
|
|
|
|
|
|
D Baeten, P Demetter, C Cuvelier, F Van den Bosch, E Kruithof, N Van Damme, G Verbruggen, H Mielants, E M Veys, and F De Keyser Comparative study of the synovial histology in rheumatoid arthritis, spondyloarthropathy, and osteoarthritis: influence of disease duration and activity Ann Rheum Dis, December 1, 2000; 59(12): 945 - 953. [Abstract] [Full Text]
|
|
|
|
|
|
B. Bresnihan, P. P. Tak, P. Emery, L. Klareskog, and F. Breedveld Synovial biopsy in arthritis research: five years of concerted European collaboration Ann Rheum Dis, July 1, 2000; 59(7): 506 - 511. [Full Text]
|
|
|
|
|
|
I. Gotis-Graham, M. D Smith, A. Parker, and H P. McNeil Synovial mast cell responses during clinical improvement in early rheumatoid arthritis Ann Rheum Dis, November 1, 1998; 57(11): 664 - 671. [Abstract] [Full Text]
|
|
|
|
|
|
O. S Jamal, P. G Conaghan, A. M Cunningham, P. M Brooks, V. F Munro, and K. F Scott Increased expression of human type IIa secretory phospholipase A2 antigen in arthritic synovium Ann Rheum Dis, September 1, 1998; 57(9): 550 - 558. [Abstract] [Full Text]
|
|
|
|
|
|
K. Gaffney, J. Cookson, S. Blades, A. Coumbe, and D. Blake Quantitative assessment of the rheumatoid synovial microvascular bed by gadolinium-DTPA enhanced magnetic resonance imaging Ann Rheum Dis, March 1, 1998; 57(3): 152 - 157. [Abstract] [Full Text]
|
|