Ultrasonography of the rotator cuff: a comparison with arthroscopy in one-hundred-and-ninety consecutive cases.
OBJECTIVE
To evaluate the accuracy of high-resolution ultrasonography compared to arthroscopy in the detection of rotator cuff tears.


METHODS
Preoperative ultrasonography (US) with a 10-MHz commercially available linear-array transducer and a standardized study protocol was performed in 190 consecutive shoulders in 185 patients with a history of shoulder pain for more than 3 months. The findings at US were classified into intact cuff, partial-thickness, and full-thickness rotator cuff tears, and correlated with findings at shoulder arthroscopy.


RESULTS
US correctly depicted 118 of 124 rotator cuff tears with sensitivity 95%, specificity 94%, PPV 97%, NPV 91% and accuracy 95%, all 94 full-thickness tears (sensitivity 100%, specificity 91%, PPV 91%, NPV 100%, and accuracy 95%), 24 of 30 partial-thickness tears (sensitivity 80%, specificity 98%, PPV 86%, NPV 96%, and accuracy 95%).


CONCLUSIONS
US is a highly accurate diagnostic method for detecting full-thickness rotator cuff tears, but is less sensitive in detecting partial-thickness rotator cuff tears.
Milosavljevic
J
J
Department of Oncology, Radiology and Clinical Immunology, Uppsala University Hospital, Uppsala, Sweden. jugo.milos@deltamed.se
Elvin
A
A
Rahme
H
H
D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D001182:Arthroscopy; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D011237:Predictive Value of Tests; D011446:Prospective Studies; D015203:Reproducibility of Results; D017006:Rotator Cuff / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging* / Q000473:pathology*; D000070636:Rotator Cuff Injuries; D013708:Tendon Injuries / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging* / Q000473:pathology* / Q000601:surgery; D015599:Trauma Severity Indices; D014463:Ultrasonography