TY - JOUR T1 - Reliability of the Pediatric Specific Musculoskeletal Ultrasound Scoring Systems for the Elbow, Wrist, and Finger Joints JF - The Journal of Rheumatology JO - J Rheumatol SP - 236 LP - 239 DO - 10.3899/jrheum.220382 VL - 50 IS - 2 AU - Patricia Vega-Fernandez AU - Ysabella Esteban AU - Edward Oberle AU - Jean-Philippe Proulx-Gauthier AU - Matthew Clark AU - Susan Shenoi AU - Akaluck Thatayatikom AU - Heather Benham AU - Emily J. Brunner AU - Leandra Woolnough AU - Michael Henrickson AU - Laura R. Pratt AU - Deirdre De Ranieri AU - Sarah Hoffmann AU - Ginger Janow AU - Hulya Bukulmez AU - Mekibib Altaye AU - Amy Cassedy AU - Tracy V. Ting AU - Johannes Roth Y1 - 2023/02/01 UR - http://www.jrheum.org/content/50/2/236.abstract N2 - Objective Musculoskeletal ultrasound (MSUS) is increasingly being used in the evaluation of pediatric musculoskeletal diseases. In order to provide objective assessments of arthritis, reliable MSUS scoring systems are needed. Recently, joint-specific scoring systems for arthritis of the pediatric elbow, wrist, and finger joints were proposed by the Childhood Arthritis and Rheumatology Research Alliance (CARRA) MSUS workgroup. This study aimed to assess the reliability of these scoring systems when used by sonographers with different levels of expertise.Methods Members of the CARRA MSUS workgroup attended training sessions for scoring the elbow, wrist, and finger. Subsequently, scoring exercises of B mode and power Doppler (PD) mode still images for each joint were performed. Interreader reliability was determined using 2-way single-score intraclass correlation coefficients (ICCs) for synovitis and Cohen for tenosynovitis.Results Seventeen pediatric rheumatologists with different levels of MSUS expertise (1-15 yrs) completed a 2-hour training session and calibration exercise for each joint. Excellent reliability (ICC > 0.75) was found after the first scoring exercise for all the finger and elbow views evaluated on B mode and PD mode, and for all of the wrist views on B mode. After a second training session and a scoring exercise, the wrist PD mode views reached excellent reliability as well.Conclusion The preliminary CARRA MSUS scoring systems for assessing arthritis of the pediatric elbow, wrist, and finger joints demonstrate excellent reliability among pediatric MSUS sonographers with different levels of expertise. With further validation, this reliable joint-specific scoring system could serve as a clinical tool and scientific outcome measure. ER -