Applicability of MV-Flow imaging in detecting subclinical synovitis of facet joints
SONG Yuting
MA Bin
LIU Yikang
FENG Xiuxian
HAN Xiaoyu
YAO Kechun
LIU Xi
SUN Siguo
Abstract：Objective To evaluate the applicability of microvascular flow(MV-Flow)imaging in evaluating low-grade inflammation of facet joints.Methods A total of 28 patients with joint pain underwent ultrasound examination,during which the blood flow in the thickened synovia was assessed using both MV-Flow imaging technology and color Doppler flow imaging(CDFI)technology.Semi-quantitative scoring was performed for blood flow signals.Differences between MV-Flow and CDFI in displaying blood flow and in vascular grading were studied.Results In a cohort of 28 patients,a total of 79 joints met the established criteria for inclusion.The detection rates for blood flow signals using MV-Flow and CDFI were determined to be 88.6％and 53.2％,respectively.MV-Flow imaging exhibited superiority in detecting synovial blood flow within the joints over CDFI,with statistically significant difference(x2=31.030,P＜0.001).Furthermore,there was no consistency in grading outcomes of synovial blood flow between MV-Flow and CDFI(Kappa=0.052,P＞0.05).Conclusion The MV-Flow imaging technique can more sensitively reflect the microvascular distribution and blood flow grading of facet joints,so it can become an effective means for evaluating small joint arthritis.
Keywords：Ultrasound examinationJointsSynovitisHemodynamics
Publication Date：2024-10-25
Online Publishing Date：2025-08-15(First online date of this platform, not the publication date of the document)
Pages：3( 423-425 )