Meeting Banner
Abstract #3186

Dynamic Contrast Enhanced MRI of the Achilles Enthesis in Spondyloarthritis

Richard Hodgson1, Peter Wright2, Andrew J. Grainger2, Phillip J. O'Connor2, Phillip Helliwell, Dennis McGonagle, Paul Emery, Matthew D. Robson3

1LMBRU, University of Leeds, Leeds, Yorkshire, United Kingdom; 2Leeds Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust; 3University of Oxford


Enthesitis is the hallmark of spondyloarthritis. 23 patients with SpA and 13 healthy volunteers were studied with DCE-MRI of the tendon and the calcaneal bone marrow at the Achilles enthesis. The relative early enhancement rate was significantly greater in SpA patients than healthy volunteers. The EER was significantly higher in patients with power Doppler ultrasound abnormalities. Tendon and bone changes were significantly correlated (R=0.6). In conclusion, DCE-MRI may be useful for assessing changes at the Achilles enthesis in spondyloarthritis.