Assessment of Triangular Fibro-cartilaginous Complex Injuries of The Wrist Using High Resolution Ultrasound versus Magnetic Resonance Imaging

Abstract

Background: Triangular fibrocartilage complex (TFCC) may be assessed using ultrasound (US) because of its wide availability, mobility, low cost, and lack of radiation. When it comes to TFCC imaging, MRI is the gold standard, although US can provide a more detailed picture of the disease.

Objective: Comparing and contrasting the use of ultrasound (US) and magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) in the detection of triangular fibrocartilaginous complex injuries of the wrist.

Patients and Methods: The study was conducted at the Radiodiagnosis Department, Zagazig University Hospital, Egypt. Wrist discomfort or reduced wrist mobility was reported by 35 individuals with a mean age of 39 ± 13.18 years old. Both radiologists who performed the ultrasound and the MRI were blinded to each other's results in order to minimize bias.

Results: 82.9 % of patients showed normal ulnar variance while 11.4 % of patients showed positive variance and 5.7% with negative variance. The ultrasound detected 18 positive cases with TFCC injury with a percentage of 51.4%. The MRI detected 24 positive cases with TFCC injury with a percentage of 68.6%. The ultrasound detected TFCC cases with a sensitivity of 75%, specificity 100%, PPV 100 and NPV 64.7.

Conclusion: It is very suggested that tendons and inflammation of the wrist could be examined by ultrasonography. In recent investigations, it was shown that US had the ability to identify injuries in the TFCC and intrinsic ligaments