Accuracy of MRI Scanning For the Diagnosis of Meniscus Tears Associated With Knee Osteoarthritis

Abstract

Objective: To evaluate accuracy of magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) scanning for the diagnosis of meniscus tears associated with knee osteoarthritis by taking arthroscopy as gold standard.

Methods: A cross-validation study was carried out in the department of radiology , started from August 2018 till August 2021. A total of 147 patients with knee joint pain were selected and referred to MRI knee. MRI knee without contrast including proton density and fat saturation sequences were obtained. The data regarding demographic features, site, grade and type of tears with final diagnosis was also collected. SPSS version 25 was used to analyze data.

Results: The mean age of the included patients was 55.62±9.97 years (range: 33 to 71 years). About 55 patients were male and 40 were females. A sensitivity of 82.7% and specificity of 93% were calculated for MRI, while the positive predictive value was 93.5%, the negative predictive value was 81.6%, and accuracy was estimated to be 87.4%. The kappa value between MRI and arthroscopic for the diagnosis of meniscus tears associated with knee osteoarthritis findings was 0.75, indicating good agreement (p = 0.001).

Conclusion: Pre-operative MRI is accurate to diagnose lateral and medial meniscal tears. However, it is not highly accurate in diagnosing bilateral meniscal tears.