Descriptive study of knee lesions using magnetic resonance imaging and correlation between medical imaging diagnosis and suspected clinical diagnosis

• Published in: Journal of family medicine and primary care Vol. 9; no. 2; pp. 1154 - 1159
• Main Authors: Alshoabi, Sultan, Atassi, Mohammed, Alhamadi, Mohammed, Tashkandi, A, Alatowi, Kamal, Alnehmi, Fawwaz, Binmodied, Abdul-Rub, Gameraddin, Moawia, Daqqaq, Tareef
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: India Wolters Kluwer India Pvt. Ltd 01.02.2020; Medknow Publications and Media Pvt. Ltd; Wolters Kluwer - Medknow; Wolters Kluwer Medknow Publications
• Subjects: clinical diagnosis; cruciate ligament lesions; Diagnostic imaging; Electronic records; Magnetic resonance imaging; magnetic resonance imaging diagnosis; Medical imaging equipment; Medical records; meniscus lesions; Original; cruciate ligament lesions; Clinical diagnosis; magnetic resonance imaging diagnosis; meniscus lesions
• ISSN: 2249-4863; 2278-7135
• DOI: 10.4103/jfmpc.jfmpc_949_19

Objective: This study aimed to assess the meniscus and cruciate ligament lesions of the knee using magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) and to investigate the correlation between clinical and MRI diagnoses. Patients and Methods: Herein, we reviewed the electronic medical records of 240 patients who underwent knee MRI. The images were evaluated and then the clinical and MRI diagnoses were compared. Results: Of the 240 patients, 66% were male and the mean age was 40.6 ± 15.5 years (range, 2-79 years). Knee pain alone was the most common presenting symptom (50.64%) followed by pain after trauma (47.92%). Majority of the knee lesions were medial meniscus (MM) lesions (63%) followed by osteoarthritis (48%) and ACL lesions (35%). The majority of the MM and ACL lesions were tears (54.6% and 69.41%, respectively) followed by degeneration (33.55% and 17.65%, respectively). However, the MM lesions were predominantly observed in the posterior horn (Odds ratio [OR], 152; 95% confidence interval (CI), 21.550-1072.113; P < 0.001). The ACL lesions were significantly more common in men than in women (OR, 0.355; 95% CI, 0.191-0.661; P = 0.001), and altered signal intensity on T2- and proton density-weighted images was the most common sign (P < 0.001). A strong compatibility was observed between the clinical and MRI diagnoses (Kappa = 0.141; P < 0.001). Conclusion: MM and ACL lesions are the most common injuries of the knee, which can be diagnosed by physical examination in most cases. Further confirmation by MRI should be reserved for doubtful cases only.