title: A new weight-bearing meniscal test and a comparison with McMurray's test and joint line tenderness.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  The purpose of this study was to describe a new weight-bearing McMurray's test (Ege's test) and to compare its diagnostic value with McMurray's test and joint line tenderness (JLT). We also aimed to determine if associated lesions had any effect on the diagnostic values of the 3 tests.
  
  
  METHODS
  Prospective controlled trial, clinical study.
  
  
  METHODS
  The study group consisted of 150 consecutive patients who had had symptoms related to intra-articular knee pathology, and arthroscopic diagnoses were used as the gold standard.
  
  
  RESULTS
  There were a total of 211 diagnoses on arthroscopy. A meniscus tear was found in 127 of the 150 patients; 90 had medial, 28 had lateral, and 9 had tears of both menisci. There were no statistically significant differences between the 3 tests in detecting a meniscal tear ( P > .05). However, better accuracy, sensitivity, and specificity rates were obtained with Ege's test for medial meniscal lesions (71%, 67%, and 81%, respectively). JLT also gave superior accuracy rates (71%), but the specificity of Ege's test was apparently higher than JLT (81% v 44%). The highest positive predictive value was also obtained with Ege's test (86%), whereas a superior negative predictive value was obtained with JLT (67%) in medial meniscal tears. Lateral meniscal tears were diagnosed more accurately than medial meniscal tears, and Ege's test gave results superior to the others (84%, 64%, 90% for accuracy, sensitivity, and specificity, respectively). Higher positive predictive values were obtained with McMurray's and Ege's tests than with JLT, but similar negative predictive values were achieved in all. A torn anterior cruciate ligament did not decrease the diagnostic values of the 3 tests, whereas the number of associated lesions in the knee negatively affected the diagnostic capabilities of the tests.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Accuracies of traditional clinical meniscus tests may be improved by including Ege's test in the clinical examination.
  
  
  METHODS
  Level II, diagnostic.
authors.affiliation: Department of Orthopaedics, Celal Bayar University School of Medicine, Manisa, Turkey. akseki3@hotmail.com
authors.forename: Devrim
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Akseki
authors.forename: Ozal
authors.initials: O
authors.lastname: Ozcan
authors.forename: Hakan
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Boya
authors.forename: Halit
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Pinar
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007592:Joint Diseases / Q000175:diagnosis; D007719:Knee Joint; D008297:Male; D008592:Menisci, Tibial / Q000502:physiology*; D008875:Middle Aged; D011446:Prospective Studies; D015203:Reproducibility of Results; D016474:Weight-Bearing