The effect of intra-articular steroid injection on the cartilage and tendon thicknesses in juvenile idiopathic arthritis.

Abstract

Intra-articular corticosteroid injection (IACI) is a safe first-line or adjunct therapy that can be used in any subtype of juvenile idiopathic arthritis (JIA). However, limited studies evaluated the effect of IACI on cartilage. As a result, our study aimed to examine the distal femoral cartilage thickness of patients with JIA who received IACI to the knee joint using ultrasound imaging. We randomly selected JIA patients who performed IACI in the knee joint. Baseline bilateral joint cartilage and tendons thickness were measured. Then, the articulary fluid was aspirated, and intra articulary steroid was injected during the same period. Six months after injection, the exact measurements were repeated. Exclusion criterias were that patients had IACI past six months of the baseline measurement and more than one IACI during the study period.. Distal femoral cartilage thickness, quadriceps tendon thickness, and distal and proximal patellar tendon thicknesses were compared at baseline (before IACI) and six months after IACI. Thirty patients with JIA were included in the study, and 23 (76.7%) were female. The median age was 11 years (interquartile range (IQR), 6 to 14), and the median disease duration was 3.3 years (IQR, 5 months to 5 years). Subtypes of JIA were oligoarticular in 25 (83.3%), polyarticular in 2 (6.7%), enthesitis-related arthritis in 2 (6.7%), and juvenile psoriatic arthritis in 1 (3.3%). Distal femoral cartilage thickness was 2.96±0.79 mm at baseline and 2.85±0.70 mm at six months after IACI (p=0.35). Also, the tendon thicknesses were the similar at six months after baseline measurements. Our findings reveal that knee IACI in patients with JIA did not significantly change cartilage and tendons thicknesses. This observation could indicate that IACIs have no detrimental effects on the cartilage and the tendons.