Musculoskeletal ultrasound (MSUS) is gaining popularity among rheumatologists, especially in the context of rheumatoid arthritis (RA) joint assessment, as it is a non-invasive, radiation-free imaging modality that is relatively easy to set up in a clinic setting. Although ultrasonography (US) is often regarded as being operator dependent with associated reproducibility issues, the use of consensus-based scoring system along with standardized definition of joint inflammation in RA has been shown to improve its performance/reliability as an outcome measurement tool. Through this review article, we have (i) gone through the principle US findings in RA joint assessment, (ii) discussed various scoring systems for evaluation of US joint pathologies, (iii) described the literature in the use of US in areas of RA diagnosis and disease prognostication and (iv) examined the findings of recent major randomized controlled trials incorporating US as monitoring tools to help target treatment in RA. By doing so, we hope to provide clinicians with an insight into the role of musculoskeletal US imaging in areas of RA diagnosis, prognosis and disease monitoring.

肌肉骨骼超声 (MSUS) 在风湿病学家中越来越受欢迎，特别是在类风湿性关节炎 (RA) 关节评估的背景下，因为它是一种非侵入性、无辐射的成像方式，在临床环境中相对容易设置。尽管超声检查 (US) 通常被认为依赖于操作者，并存在相关的可重复性问题，但使用基于共识的评分系统以及 RA 中关节炎症的标准化定义已被证明可以提高其作为结果测量工具的性能/可靠性。通过这篇评论文章，我们已经 (i) 了解了美国在 RA 联合评估中的主要发现，(ii) 讨论了用于评估美国联合病理的各种评分系统，(iii) 描述了在 RA 诊断和疾病预测领域使用 US 的文献，以及 (iv) 检查了最近主要随机对照试验的结果，这些试验将 US 作为监测工具，帮助在 RA 中进行靶向治疗。通过这样做，我们希望让临床医生深入了解肌肉骨骼超声成像在 RA 诊断、预后和疾病监测领域的作用。