Evaluation of ultrasonography as a diagnostic technique in the assessment of rotator cuff tendon tears

In this study we assessed the clinical usefulness of ultrasonography as a modality in the diagnosis of rotator cuff tears. One hundred twenty patients with preoperative ultrasonography were analyzed by diagnostic arthroscopy to evaluate rotator cuff integrity. Two groups, 61 patients with a positive ultrasonogram and 59 patients with a negative ultrasonogram, were analyzed. The 61 patients with a positive ultrasonogram preoperatively were found to have 42 full-thickness tears and 19 partial-thickness tears. Diagnostic arthroscopy confirmed a sensitivity of 95% for the full-thickness tears and 41% for the partial-thickness tears. In the 59 patients with negative ultrasonography, the specificity for full-thickness tears was 93% and in the 19 partial-thickness tears it was 91%. Our conclusion is that ultrasonography is an effective modality for the assessment of full-thickness tears, but not partial-thickness tears.