A patient with acute monoarthritis can often be managed by a primary care provider. However, there are times when the patient needs to be referred to a specialist or for specialized testing.
Indications for referral of a patient with acute monoarthritis:
(1) need to perform arthrocentesis under ultrasonographic or CT guidance
(2) septic arthritis
(3) suspected autoimmune disease
(4) failure to respond to adequate therapy
(5) failure to identify a cause
(6) need for synovial biopsy or arthroscopy
(7) suspected malignancy
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