Imaging in rheumatology: reconciling radiology and rheumatology

Insights into Imaging

Table 1 Usefulness of the various imaging modalities for the early diagnosis of inflammatory joint disorders

	X-ray	US	MRI	Nuclear medicine	CT
Rheumatoid arthritis	–	+	+	+	–
Inflammatory spondylarthropathy	–	+−	++	+	+−
Gout	+−	+−	+−	–	+−

– means not usually useful, +− means may or may not be useful depending on clinical circumstances, + means usually useful, ++ means method of choice