Chagas disease: a tropical infection of interest to the radiologist

Ultrasound of ankles in the diagnosis of complications of chikungunya fever

Objective

To describe the main ultrasound findings of chikungunya fever in the ankle.

Materials and Methods

This was a cross-sectional observational study involving 52 patients referred to the Hospital Universitário Pedro Ernesto and presenting with clinical and biochemical evidence of chikungunya fever. The examinations were performed by a radiologist with more than 20 years of experience in ultrasound.

Results

The predominant gender was female (in 88.5%), and the mean age was 58.4 years. The majority (61.5%) of the patients came from the northern part of the city of Rio de Janeiro, and 46.2% were using corticosteroids to treat inflammatory symptoms. The most common alterations observed by ultrasound were joint effusion (in 69.2%), tenosynovitis (in 59.6%), cellulitis (in 46.2%), Kager's fat pad thickening (in 29.9%), myositis (of the soleus or flexor hallucis longus muscle) (in 17.3%), retrocalcaneal bursitis (in 5.8%), tendon ruptures (in 3.8%), and increased vascular flow on power Doppler (in 3.8%).

Conclusion

Signs of synovitis and tenosynovitis were the main ultrasound findings in a predominantly female population with a mean age of 58.4 years. Further studies are needed in order to define the role of ultrasound in the follow-up of such patients.