Comparison of MRI and High-Resolution Ultrasound in Assessing Rotator Cuff Disorders

Abstract

Background: Rotator cuff disorders cause shoulder pain and require accurate imaging for diagnosis and treatment. High-resolution ultrasound (USG) and magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) are the principal modalities, however their clinical efficacy is unknown.

Objective: This study aims to evaluate and compare the diagnostic accuracy of USG and MRI in the detection of rotator cuff pathologies, focusing on their sensitivity, specificity, and clinical applicability.

Methods: At a Bhubaneswar, India, medical centre, 100 shoulder discomfort patients received USG and MRI for a retrospective analysis. Modality sensitivity and specificity were calculated and compared. Statistical software was used to compare the two imaging methods.

Results: With 94% sensitivity and 88% specificity, MRI outperformed USG with 82% sensitivity and 79% specificity. Partial rips were best detected by MRI. USG and MRI imaging findings correlated 0.85, suggesting significant agreement while highlighting MRI's better detail.

Conclusion: MRI is better than USG for identifying subtle and complicated rotator cuff problems. USG is still useful for early assessments and resource-limited situations due to its cost-effectiveness and dynamic evaluation. If clinical needs and resources allow, both methods can improve rotator cuff diagnosis and treatment.

Keywords: rotator cuff pathologies, MRI, ultrasound, diagnostic accuracy, shoulder pain