Objective.: To develop definitions for the assessment of magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) pathologies of the sacroiliac joints (SIJ) in juvenile idiopathic arthritis.Methods.: An Outcome Measures in Rheumatology (OMERACT) consensus-driven methodology consisting of iterative surveys and focus group meetings within an international group of rheumatologists and radiologists.Results.: Two domains, inflammation and structural, were identified. Definitions for bone marrow edema, joint space inflammation, capsulitis, and enthesitis were derived for joint inflammation; sclerosis, erosion, fatty lesion, and ankylosis were defined for assessing structural joint changes.Conclusion.: Preliminary consensus-driven definitions for inflammation and structural elements have been derived, underpinning the ongoing development of the OMERACT Juvenile Arthritis MRI SIJ scoring system (OMERACT JAMRIS-SIJ).

OBJECTIVE. Accurate and reproducible MRI assessment of the sacroiliac joint (SIJ) is challenging. Numerous scoring systems have been proposed to facilitate consistent SIJ assessment. The purpose of this article is to evaluate the diagnostic accuracy and reliability of existing MRI-based SIJ scoring systems for the evaluation of spondyloarthropathy. CONCLUSION. Among existing methods, there is fair (grade B) evidence to recommend the Spondyloarthropathy Research Consortium of Canada scoring systems as tools for MRI evaluation of the SIJ. However, limited data on criterion validity limit assessment of scoring system accuracy.

This study reports the reliability of the juvenile idiopathic arthritis magnetic resonance imaging scoring system (JAMRIS-SIJ). The study comprised of eight raters—two rheumatologists and six radiologists—and 30 coronal T1 and Short-Tau Inversion Recovery (STIR) MRI scans of patients with enthesitis-related juvenile spondylarthritis. The median age of patients was 15 years with a mean disease duration of 5 years and 22 (73.3%) of the sample were boys. The inter-rater agreement of scores for each of the JAMRIS-SIJ items was calculated using a two-way random effect, absolute agreement, and single rater intraclass correlation coefficient (ICC 2.1). The ICC was interpreted together with kurtosis, since the ICC is also affected by the distribution of scores in the sample. The eight-rater, single measure inter-rater ICC (and kurtosis) values for JAMRIS-SIJ inflammation and damage components were the following: bone marrow edema (BME), 0.76 (1.2); joint space inflammation, 0.60 (1.8); capsulitis, 0.58 (9.2); enthesitis, 0.20 (0.1); ankylosis, 0.89 (35); sclerosis, 0.53 (4.6); erosion, 0.50 (6.5); fat lesion, 0.40 (21); backfill, 0.38 (38). The inter-rater reliability for BME and ankylosis scores was good and met the a priori set ICC threshold, whereas for the other items it was variable and below the selected threshold. Future directives should focus on refinement of the scores, definitions, and methods of interpretation prior to validation of the JAMRIS-SIJ through the assessment of its measurement properties.

Introduction: Dermatoglyphics refers to the study of naturally occurring ridge on the planter surface of hand and foot of primates and other animals. Dermatoglyphics is a polygenic trait and is not duplicated among species even among monozygotic twins.The Ijaw’s are located predominately in the Niger Delta with fishing as their main stay of economy.Aim: To determine the frequency distribution and gender differences of dermatoglyphic patterns of the Ijaw ethnic group in Nigeria.Methodology: A total of 500 subjects were randomly selected to establish their digital and palmer dermatoglyphics by counting and classifying their ridge patterns based on standard technique.Results: The highest dermatoglyphic pattern frequency was radial loop (RL) 2.7±1.22, with least occurrence of ulnar loop pattern (UL) 1.37±0.60. There were no significant total finger ridge count (TFRC) and pattern intensity indices (PII) between sex P>0.05. Female subject had a significantly higher mean ATD angle and a-b ridge count than their male counterpart P