Abstract
Introduction
Magnetic resonance arthrogram (MRA) is the investigation of choice in young adults with symptoms of femero acetabular impingement. The aim of the study is to assess the accuracy of MRA when correlated with surgical findings on hip arthroscopy.
Materials and Method
Between June 2007 and January 2014, 136 patients had MRA followed by subsequent arthroscopy at our institution. The radiology information system was used to gather MRA data. All scans were reported by a consultant radiologist with a specialist interest in musculoskeletal radiology. Patient records were reviewed to gather surgical data. Assessment was made of labral injury, Camshaft (CAM) or Pincer lesion and degeneration of the cartilage.
Results
Mean age at MRA was 34.5 years with a 2.5:1 female to male ratio. For labral pathology sensitivity, specificity, positive predictive value (PPV) and negative predictive value (NPV) were 89, 100, 100 and 22% respectively. For CAM (62, 80, 79 and 64% respectively) and Pincer lesions (15, 84, 81 and 18% respectively). MRA was specific for picking up Grade 3/4 degenerate changes in the articular cartilage (92.2%) but was not as sensitive (60%), PPV 55 and NPV 94.
Conclusion
These findings demonstrate that MRA is a sensitive and specific imaging modality for assessing the labrum and articular surface, but not as good for assessing CAM and Pincer lesions. This could be due to the static nature of the MRA or a lack of firm definition as to what constitutes a CAM or Pincer lesion leading to under reporting. This maybe better assessed with plane X ray or Computed tomography with 3 dimensional reconstruction. Further to this it would be interesting to combine the plane X ray and MRA finding and see if sensitivity and specificity was improved.
