Clinical evaluation of the shape of the suprascapular notch-an ultrasonographic and computed tomography comparative study: Application to shoulder pain syndromes

• Published in: Clinical anatomy (New York, N.Y.) Vol. 28; no. 6; pp. 774 - 779
• Main Authors: Polguj, Michał, Synder, Marek, Kwapisz, Adam, Stefańczyk, Katarzyna, Grzelak, Piotr, Podgórski, Michał, Topol, Mirosław
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: United States Blackwell Publishing Ltd 01.09.2015; Wiley Subscription Services, Inc
• Subjects: Classification; Comparative studies; Compressing; Compression; Computed tomography; Disorders; Female; Handedness; Humans; Imaging, Three-Dimensional; Male; Middle Aged; Nerve Compression Syndromes - complications; Nerve Compression Syndromes - diagnosis; Pain; Patients; Reproducibility of Results; Scapula - diagnostic imaging; Scapula - innervation; Sensitivity analysis; Shoulder; Shoulder Joint - diagnostic imaging; Shoulder Pain - diagnosis; Shoulder Pain - etiology; Skin; suprascapular; Syndrome; Tomography, X-Ray Computed - methods; ultrasonography; variation; computed tomography; suprascapular; shoulder; ultrasonography; variation
• ISSN: 0897-3806; 1098-2353; 1098-2353
• DOI: 10.1002/ca.22582

The most common site of suprascapular nerve compression and injury is the suprascapular notch. The aim of this study was to assess the sensitivity and specificity of sonography in determining the type of suprascapular notch (SSN). Thirty randomized patients (60 upper extremities) underwent USG examination of the shoulder area. The results were further compared with three‐dimensional reconstructions of the scapulae obtained through CT examination to place the SSNs within a fivefold classification. For identification of type I, the sensitivity was 73.3% and the specificity 97.8%. For identification of type III, the values was 96.9% and 85.7%, respectively. Type II was not found in USG examination. Discrimination between type IV and V was not possible. The mean distance between the line connecting the edges of the SSN and the skin was 38 mm in right‐handed patients and 34 mm in ambidextrous subjects. Ultrasonographic examination of the SSN is characterized by high specificity for type I, and high sensitivity for type III SSN. Discrimination between type IV and V of the SSN is not recommended based on sonographic evaluation. Clin. Anat. 28:774–779, 2015. © 2015 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.