MRI Research Today is a free monthly online journal that collates and summarizes the latest research about MRI, including details on magnetic resonance imaging, neuroimaging, brain tumors. | ||||||||
|
MRI-negative bucket-handle tears of the lateral meniscus in athletes: a case series.Makdissi M, Eriksson KO, Morris HG, Young DA Centre for Health, Exercise and Sports Medicine, University of Melbourne, 3054, Melbourne, Australia, m.makdissi@pgrad.unimelb.edu.au. Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) is the most widely used non-invasive test for assessing intra-articular injuries of the knee. It has been suggested that a negative MRI can be useful in avoiding the need for diagnostic arthroscopy in cases where clinical examination is equivocal. However, the sensitivity and specificity of MRI is not 100%, particularly for tears of the lateral meniscus. Furthermore, a false negative MRI scan may result in premature return to play in athletes, resulting in increased risk of further damage to a torn meniscus. To illustrate this issue, we present a case series of eight elite athletes who all presented with mechanical knee symptoms and where MRI scans revealed no significant intra-articular pathology. Five of the athletes were allowed to return to sport on the basis of a negative MRI. All patients were subsequently found to have a bucket-handle tear of their lateral meniscus at arthroscopy. Two independent, experienced musculoskeletal radiologists were asked to review the MRI films without being given any clinical history of the cases. Although injuries to the popliteus tendon were noted in two of the athletes who had sustained a recent acute injury to their knee, no meniscal tears were identified. Thus arthroscopy remains the gold standard for the assessment and management of high-demand patients with a clinical suspicion of meniscal pathology. Published 2 October 2006 in Knee Surg Sports Traumatol Arthrosc, 14(10): 1012-6.
© 2005-2008 MRI Research Today. All Rights Reserved. |
| ||||||
