PREDICTING FORUM

_____________________________________THE FORUM OF PREDICTING________________________________________
_________________________Mayan Calendar__Sign of The End__Welcome to Evolution 2012_________________________

Sunday, June 10, 2012

PREDICTING HEALTH: ARTHRITIS

Rheumatiod arthritis prediction score


Researchers have developed a new tool that could help determine if a patient is likely to develop rheumatoid arthritis and should be given early aggressive treatment.

Researchers have developed a new tool that could help nurse specialists determine if a patient is likely to develop rheumatoid arthritis and should be given early aggressive treatment.

Using a prediction rule , the team were able to accurately predict who of the 1,700 arthritis patients would go onto develop rheumatoid arthritis at the end of the year-long study.

 Results.
The prediction rule consisted of 9 clinical variables:
sex, age, localization of symptoms, morning
stiffness, the tender joint count, the swollen joint count,the C-reactive protein level, rheumatoid factor positivity, and the presence of anti–cyclic citrullinated peptide
antibodies.

Signs or symptoms
Present  or Absent


1 -Morning stiffness
Stiffness in or around the affected joints for at least one hour after initiating movement


2- Arthritis of three or more joint areas
Three or more of the following joints noted to be fluid-filled or have soft-tissue swelling: wrist, PIP, MCP, elbow, knee, ankle, MTP


3- Hand joint involvement
Wrist, MCP, or PIP joints among the symptomatic joints observed


4- Symmetric arthritis
Right and left extremities involved for one or more of following joints: wrist, PIP, MCP, elbow, knee, ankle,

5- Rheumatoid nodules
Subcutaneous nodules in regions surrounding joints, extensor surfaces, or bony prominences


6- Serum rheumatoid factor test result positive
Positive result using any laboratory test that has a positive predictive value of 95 percent or more (i.e., is positive in no more than 5 percent of patients without rheumatoid arthritis)


7- Radiographic changes
Hand and wrist films show typical changes of erosions or loss of density adjacent to affected joints

note: A patient is classified as having rheumatoid arthritis if four criteria are present and the first four criteria have been present for at least six weeks.