To investigate the validity of a computer-based method using temporal subtraction in carpal joints of patients with rheumatoid arthritis (RA), which can detect the difference in joint space between two images with the joint space difference index (JSDI).
The study consisted of 43 patients with RA (39 females and 4 males) who underwent radiography at baseline and at 1-year follow-up. The joint space narrowing (JSN) of carpal joints on bilateral hand radiographs was assessed by our computer-based method, using the Sharp/van der Heijde method as the standard of reference. We compared the JSDI of joints with JSN progression in the follow-up period with that of those without JSN progression. In addition, we examined whether there is a significant difference in JSDI in terms of laterality or topology of the joint.
The JSDI of joints with JSN progression was significantly higher than that of those without JSN progression (Mann-Whitney U test, p < 0.001). There was no statistically significant difference in the JSDI between the left and right carpal joints, which was analysed for five different joints altogether and each joint separately (Mann-Whitney U test, p > 0.05). There was statistically significant difference in JSDI among different joints (Kruskal-Wallis test, p = 0.003).
The computer-based temporal subtraction method can detect the JSN progression in the wrist, which is the single most commonly involved site in RA.
These results suggest that our computer-based method may be useful to recognize the JSN progression on radiographs of rheumatoid wrists.