Glenohumeral Articular Cartilage Lesions: Prospective Comparison of Non-Contrast Magnetic Resonance Imaging and Findings at Arthroscopy

Purpose: The purpose of this study was to assess the diagnostic sensitivity, specificity, accuracy, negative predictive value (NPV), positive predictive value (PPV), and test-retest reliability of magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) for detecting cartilage abnormalities of the glenohumeral joint in comparison with the gold standard of diagnostic arthroscopy. Methods: Forty-four patients with a preoperative non-contrast MRI study of their affected shoulder underwent arthroscopy by one surgeon for rotator cuff tendinopathy from 2009 to 2010. Articular cartilage defects were prospectively recorded and graded according to the International Cartilage Repair Society classification system at the time of arthroscopy. One year after surgery, the preoperative MRI were reviewed by a board-certified radiologist and the treating surgeon for articular cartilage defects of both the humeral head and the glenoid. Sensitivity, specificity, accuracy, and test-retest reliability were calculated. Results: At arthroscopy, 43% of the shoulders were found to have articular cartilage defects. When the readers' findings were combined, the sensitivity of detecting humeral lesions on MRI was 32%; specificity, 80%; accuracy, 63%; PPV, 57%; and NPV, 66%. The sensitivity of detecting glenoid lesions was 31%; specificity, 86%; accuracy, 76%; PPV, 33%; and NPV, 85%. Conclusions: This study finds that the overall accuracy of MRI in detecting articular cartilage damage in patients with the clinical diagnosis of subacromial pathology is moderate. Level of Evidence: Level II, development of diagnostic criteria based on consecutive patients with universally applied reference "gold" standard.