Radiographic ABCDES of Osteoarthritis?
- A —No ankylosis.
- Alignment may be abnormal.
- B —Bone mineralization is normal.
- Bony subchondral sclerosis.
- Bony spurs (osteophytes).
- C —No calcifications in cartilage.
- Cartilage space narrowing that is nonuniform (occurs in area of maximal stress in weight-bearing joints).
- D —Deformities of Heberden’s/Bouchard’s nodes.
- Distribution: involvement of typical joints (see Questions 6 and 7).
- E —No erosions.
- (“Gull wing” sign in “erosive” OA [EOA]
- S —Slow progression over years.
- No specific nail or soft tissue abnormalities.
- Vacuum sign in degenerative disc disease (a collection of nitrogen in a degenerated disc space).
Always obtain weight-bearing radiographs when evaluating for joint space narrowing of lower extremity large joints
