ABSTRACT
We retrospectively evaluated the lateral collateral ligamentous complex of 43 patients who had complained of ankle pain following ankle sprain. The MR signs of ligamentous abnormality included discontinuity or absence, increased signal within the ligament, and ligamentous irregularity or waviness with normal thickness and signal intensity. Using these criteria, 30 anterior talofibular, 20 calcaneofibular, and no posterior talofibular ligament injuries were diagnosed. Compared with surgery (nine patients), MRI demonstrated six of seven anterior talofibular ligament injuries and six of six calcaneofibular ligament injuries. Magnetic resonance showed ligamentous abnormalities in 12 of 23 cases with normal stress radiography. Magnetic resonance imaging provides useful information for the evaluation of patients presenting with chronic pain after ankle sprain.
Subject(s)
Ankle Injuries/diagnosis , Ligaments, Articular/injuries , Ligaments, Articular/pathology , Magnetic Resonance Imaging , Sprains and Strains/diagnosis , Adolescent , Adult , Aged , Ankle Injuries/diagnostic imaging , Ankle Injuries/pathology , Ankle Injuries/surgery , Ankle Joint/pathology , Calcaneus/pathology , Female , Fibula/pathology , Humans , Ligaments, Articular/diagnostic imaging , Ligaments, Articular/surgery , Male , Middle Aged , Radiography , Retrospective Studies , Sprains and Strains/diagnostic imaging , Sprains and Strains/pathology , Sprains and Strains/surgery , Talus/pathology , Tendons/pathologyABSTRACT
This study is both a retrospective and prospective evaluation of the clinical usefulness of shoulder sonography. Ninety-eight patients suspected of having rotator cuff tears underwent sonography of both shoulders. Sixty-two patients underwent double-contrast arthrography performed on the same day as sonography, and 38 patients underwent surgery after sonography. A comparison of the results from ultrasound and arthrography, using published diagnostic criteria, demonstrated a sensitivity of 75% and a specificity of 43% for detection of a rotator cuff tear. In this study, use of more restricted criteria, a subset of the published criteria, yielded a sensitivity of 68% and a specificity of 90%. A comparison of sonography with surgery, using this study's criteria, demonstrated a sensitivity of 57% and a specificity of 76%. This report shows that shoulder sonography is less reliable than previously reported and appears to have a very limited role in the evaluation of rotator cuff injuries.
