Use the Back button in your browser to see the other results of your search or to select another record.
Display
selected records
Continue
Searching
Search helpComparative diagnostic accuracy of MRI and ultrasound in meniscal tear detection: evaluating reliability and limitations against arthroscopic outcomes
Noorelahi Y
Radiol Res Pract 2025 Nov 28;2025:6270476
primary study
OBJECTIVE: Accurate meniscal tear diagnosis is essential for proper knee injury management. While MRI is the gold standard, ultrasound (US) offers a cost-effective alternative. However, its accuracy compared to arthroscopy remains uncertain. This study evaluates the diagnostic performance of US versus MRI, using arthroscopic outcomes as the benchmark for meniscal tear detection. METHODS: A prospective cohort study was conducted on 208 patients aged 18-60 years with suspected meniscal injuries. Each patient underwent both US and MRI, with findings compared to arthroscopy, the gold standard for confirmation. Clinical, imaging and arthroscopic data were systematically recorded and analysed for sensitivity, specificity and diagnostic agreement. The McNemar test was used to assess differences in sensitivity and specificity between US and MRI, while the kappa coefficient evaluated the agreement between US, MRI and arthroscopy. RESULTS: MRI demonstrated higher diagnostic accuracy (91.83%) compared to US (84.62%) in detecting meniscal tears, using arthroscopy as the gold standard. MRI showed superior sensitivity (96.19% versus 86.67%), specificity (87.38% versus 82.52%) and agreement (kappa = 0.836 versus 0.692), with a significant difference compared to arthroscopy (p = 0.049). CONCLUSION: Overall, MRI demonstrated superior diagnostic accuracy, sensitivity and specificity compared to US, suggesting that it is a more reliable imaging modality for detecting meniscal tears when arthroscopy is not feasible. In addition, US limitations in detecting complex tear patterns highlight the need for further refinement of US techniques.
Full text (sometimes free) may be available at these link(s): 
help
