The accuracy of MRI for the diagnosis of ramp lesions

To assess the diagnostic accuracy of MRI in diagnosing ramp lesions in patients with an acute lesion of the anterior cruciate ligament (ACL).

All consecutive patients over 15 years of age who underwent surgical repair of the ACL at a single hospital between January and May 2019, with MRI data available, were included in this retrospective study, except patients who had previous knee surgery. The gold standard was arthroscopic evaluation. Two trained radiologists with 5 and 14 years of experience did a blinded review of the MRIs. The following pathological signs were studied: complete fluid filling between the capsule and the posterior horn of the medial meniscus, irregular appearance of the posterior wall of the medial meniscus, oedema of the capsule, fluid hyperintensity in contact with the medial meniscus and anterior subluxation of the medial meniscus. Logistic regressions in univariate then multivariate analysis were carried out and measures of diagnostic accuracy and interobserver agreement were calculated with R software (version 3.6).

Fifty-seven patients were included. Twelve had a ramp lesion diagnosed by arthroscopy (21%). Only complete fluid hyperintensity between the posterior horn of the medial meniscus and the capsule was significantly associated with ramp lesions (P value < 0.01). The diagnostic accuracy of this specific sign was moderate, with a specificity of 84%, sensitivity of 75%, PPV of 56%, NPV of 93% and a good level of inter-observer agreement (k = 0.79).

The complete fluid filling is the only significant pathological MRI sign for ramp lesions, with moderate accuracy.