Meniscal Extrusion and Knee Osteoarthritis Symptoms
Author Information
Author(s): Fabio Tortorella, Angelo Boffa, Alessandro Di Martino, Luca Andriolo, Giancarlo Facchini, Maddalena Di Carlo, Marco Miceli, Stefano Zaffagnini, Giuseppe Filardo
Primary Institution: IRCCS Istituto Ortopedico Rizzoli, Bologna, Italy
Hypothesis
Greater symptomatology could be correlated with a higher degree of meniscal extrusion and that evaluation using ultrasound could be more accurate than MR imaging.
Conclusion
Meniscal extrusion correlates with knee osteoarthritis symptoms, especially for the lateral meniscus, and ultrasound is more effective than MRI in identifying this correlation.
Supporting Evidence
- Meniscal extrusion is defined as the displacement of the meniscus beyond the tibial plateau by ≥3 mm.
- Ultrasound evaluation in a standing position identifies more patients with meniscal extrusion than MRI.
- Patients with greater meniscal extrusion reported significantly worse clinical outcomes.
Takeaway
If the meniscus in your knee sticks out too much, it can make your knee hurt more. Doctors can use special pictures to see this better.
Methodology
Patients underwent MR and ultrasound evaluations, and their symptoms were assessed using various clinical scores.
Potential Biases
Potential confounding due to differences in age, BMI, and Kellgren–Lawrence grade between lower and higher extrusion groups.
Limitations
Differences in patient characteristics between groups could introduce confounding effects, and the observational design limits establishing causality.
Participant Demographics
100 patients, mean age 60.3 years, 65 males and 35 females.
Statistical Information
P-Value
p < 0.05
Statistical Significance
p<0.05
Digital Object Identifier (DOI)
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