Quantitative assessment of synovitis in Legg-Calvé-Perthes disease using gadolinium-enhanced MRI.

A quantitative method to assess hip synovitis in Legg-Calvé-Perthes disease (LCPD) is not currently available. To develop this method, the areas of synovial enhancement on gadolinium-enhanced MRI (Gd-MRI) were measured by two independent observers. The volume of synovial enhancement was significantly increased in the initial and the fragmentation stages of LCPD (Waldenström stages I and II), with a persistence of synovitis into the reossification stage (stage III). The Gd-MRI method had high interobserver and intraobserver agreements and may serve as a useful method to monitor the effect of various treatments on hip synovitis in LCPD.