Zygapophyseal Joint Fusion in Ankylosing Spondylitis Assessed by Computed Tomography: Associations with Syndesmophytes and Spinal Motion

The Journal of Rheumatology
Sovira TanMichael M Ward

Abstract

Because zygapophyseal joints (ZJ) are difficult to visualize on radiographs, little is known about the relationship of ZJ fusion to other features of spinal damage in ankylosing spondylitis (AS). We used computed tomography (CT) to investigate the concordance of ZJ fusion and syndesmophytes, and examined the contribution of both features to spinal motion. We performed thoracolumbar CT scans (T10-T11 to L3-L4) on 55 patients. Two readers scored scans for ZJ fusion, which were compared to syndesmophyte height and extent of bridging, measured by computer algorithm at the same levels. We used multiple regression analysis to evaluate the relative contributions of ZJ fusion and syndesmophytes to spinal mobility. Fifty-one percent of patients had ZJ fusion in at least 1 vertebral level. Fusion was present in 129 of 652 individual ZJ. Syndesmophytes and bridging were often present in vertebral levels without ZJ fusion, suggesting that syndesmophytes most often develop first. ZJ fusion was present in 34% of vertebral levels with syndesmophytes and 55.9% of levels with bridging, suggesting a closer association with bridging. Syndesmophytes and ZJ fusion had similar associations with the modified Schober test, but syndesmophytes were more...Continue Reading

References

Jun 1, 1988·Arthritis and Rheumatism·P A SimkinR F Kilcoyne
Sep 21, 2005·European Spine Journal : Official Publication of the European Spine Society, the European Spinal Deformity Society, and the European Section of the Cervical Spine Research Society·Annette Kettler, Hans-Joachim Wilke
Sep 2, 2006·Arthritis and Rheumatism·Heiner AppelChristoph Loddenkemper
Aug 10, 2011·Journal of Biomechanical Engineering·Nicolas V JaumardBeth A Winkelstein
Jan 25, 2013·Annals of the Rheumatic Diseases·Sovira TanMichael M Ward
Jul 23, 2014·Arthritis Care & Research·Jerusalem Calvo-GutierrezEduardo Collantes-Estevez

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Citations

Mar 15, 2018·Current Opinion in Rheumatology·Sovira Tan, Michael M Ward
Jan 23, 2021·Radiographics : a Review Publication of the Radiological Society of North America, Inc·Julia E C AnayaAndré Y Aihara

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