Accuracy of shoulder ultrasound examination for diagnosis of rotator cuff pathologies: a single-center retrospective study

Shoulder pathologies need accurate diagnosis for best management and treatment provided to patients. Determine the diagnostic sensitivity, specificity and accuracy of shoulder ultrasonography (US). Retrospective, analytical. Tertiary care center in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. We included all shoulder exams performed between January 2010 and December 2016 that met the inclusion criteria. Data was collected retrospectively from the a picture archiving and communication system and patient records. The patients were evaluated using US for the presence of rotator cuff tears and classified into intact, full-thickness tear, partial-thickness tear, tendinosis, subacromial/subdeltoid bursitis and acromioclavicular joint degenerative changes. The US findings were correlated with the shoulder MRI study findings. The time interval between the US examination and MRI ranged from 0 to 180 days (6 months). To compare the sensitivity, specificity and accuracy of shoulder US studies in the detection of rotator cuff pathologies in comparison to MRI findings. 86 (60 females, 26 male), mean age 53.7 years (range, 19-85). The sensitivity, specificity and accuracy of US for the detection of full-thickness supraspinatus tears compared with those of MRI were 86%, 82% and 83%, respectively. The sensitivity, specificity and accuracy of US for the detection of partial-thickness supraspinatus tears compared with those of MRI were 38%, 70% and 58%, respectively. Overall PPV, NPV, sensitivity, specificity and accuracy of US for the detection of full-thickness tears compared with those of MRI were 35%, 97%, 78%, 83% and 83%, respectively. For partial-thickness tears, the overall PPV, NPV, sensitivity, specificity and accuracy of US compared with those of MRI were 51%, 60%, 51%, 60% and 56%, respectively. Overall, US has high sensitivity, specificity and accuracy for the detection of full-thickness tears compared with the detection of partial-thickness tears. Small sample size and retrospective. None.