Evaluation of ligament and meniscal injuries following knee trauma by MRI and its correlation with arthroscopy

Background: Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) is a non-invasive, quick and convenient investigation for evaluation of ligament and meniscal pathologies of the knee joint. Although arthroscopy is an invasive procedure it is considered the gold standard for evaluating injuries to menisci and ligaments and can be used for both diagnostic and therapeutic purpose. The purpose of this study was to evaluate cruciate ligament and meniscal injuries following knee trauma by MRI and correlate the findings with arthroscopy. Materials and methods: This was a prospective study conducted at our institution including 61 patients with clinically suspected ligament and meniscal injury of knee. All the patients initially underwent MRI and subsequent arthroscopy. The location, type and grade of meniscal and ligament tears on MRI were recorded and later correlated with arthroscopic findings. Results: The right knee joint was involved in 65.6 % and the left knee in 34.4 % of cases. The anterior cruciate ligament was the most commonly injured structure. The sensitivity, specificity and accuracy of MRI in detecting anterior cruciate ligament injury were 100%, 71.4% and 96.72 % respectively, posterior cruciate ligament injury (100%, 100% and 100% respectively), medial meniscus injury (100%, 78.8% and 88.5% respectively) and lateral meniscus injury (100%, 90.5% and 93.44% respectively). Conclusion: MRI is highly sensitive and accurate in detection of cruciate ligament and meniscal tears. A good correlation was obtained between MRI and arthroscopic findings in this study. MRI used as a screening tool prior to arthroscopy helps in avoiding negative diagnostic arthroscopy.