Synoviorthesis with colloidal 32P chromic phosphate for hemophilic arthropathy: clinical follow-up

Thirty-one synoviortheses were performed in 22 joints of 14 hemophilic patients (aged 12 to 28 years) with chronic synovitis and for whom "conventional treatments" were considered ineffective. Except for patients with inhibitors, conventional treatments included three to six months of adequate prophylactic therapy with the missing coagulation factors, intensive physiotherapy and, when indicated, antiinflammatory agents and orthosis. Colloidal 32P chromic phosphate was injected intraarticularly in doses of 1.0 mCi for knees and of 0.5 mCi for the other joints. Time of follow-up ranged from two to five years. Frequency and importance of bleeding decreased in all patients. Effect on range of motion was best in knees; six of the seven treated improved and one was unchanged. In elbows, flexion-extension was improved in four cases, unchanged in five and decreased in one; pronation-supination was decreased in four cases. Range of motion was not affected in shoulders and ankles except for internal-external rotation which was improved in two of three shoulders treated. The results of 13 synoviortheses in four hemophilic patients with high titer factor VIII inhibitors were comparable to those in hemophiliacs with no inhibitors. However, in three of the four patients synoviorthesis had to be repeated after two to four years for recurrence of synovitis. Extraarticular escape of radioactivity was monitored 62 times for 17 synoviortheses in 12 patients; extraarticular counts never exceeded 4% of the intraarticular counts. Chromosome aberrations were found not to be increased after treatment in the seven patients in whom adequate analysis could be done.