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Accuracy of Ultrasound Compared to Magnetic Resonance Imaging in the Diagnosis of Thumb Ulnar Collateral Ligament Injuries
Author(s) -
Moore Brittany J.,
Iafrate Julia L.,
Kakar Sanjeev,
Wisniewski Stephen J.,
Murthy Naveen S.,
Smith Jay
Publication year - 2021
Publication title -
journal of ultrasound in medicine
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.574
H-Index - 91
eISSN - 1550-9613
pISSN - 0278-4297
DOI - 10.1002/jum.15491
Subject(s) - medicine , thumb , magnetic resonance imaging , ultrasound , radiology , ligament , tears , surgery
This prospective case series compared the accuracy of ultrasound (US) to magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) in differentiating complete displaced (CD) thumb ulnar collateral ligament (UCL) tears from nondisplaced injuries in 10 patients with suspected traumatic thumb UCL injuries. Ultrasound identified 100% (2 of 2) of MRI‐documented CD tears, both of which were further confirmed during surgical repair. Ultrasound identified the absence of CD tears in the remaining 8 patients. Although MRI is the reference standard imaging modality for characterizing thumb UCL injuries, ultrasound should be considered an accurate, cost‐effective, and alternative imaging modality to differentiate surgical versus nonsurgical thumb UCL injuries.