Postoperative Imaging of the Rotator Cuff: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis

BACKGROUND. It is unclear which, MRI or ultrasound (US), is the most useful imaging tool to diagnose rotator cuff retears. OBJECTIVE. The objective of this study was to evaluate MRI and US in terms of diagnosing retear of a repaired rotator cuff tendon using a systematic review and meta-analysis. EVIDENCE ACQUISITION. A comprehensive literature search was performed on the main concepts of MRI (including noncontrast MRI and MR arthrography), US, and rotator cuff repairs. Inclusion criteria consisted of original research studies that assessed the diagnostic accuracy of MRI and US (index tests) for the diagnosis of rotator cuff tendon retear after prior rotator cuff repair using surgical findings as the reference standard. QUADAS-2 was used to assess methodologic quality. Meta-analyses were performed to compare MRI and US studies in the diagnosis of all retears and of full-thickness retears. Study variation was analyzed using the Cochran Q test and I² statistic. EVIDENCE SYNTHESIS. Eight studies (MRI, n = 6; US, n = 2) satisfied inclusion and exclusion criteria, consisting of 304 total patients (MRI, n = 221; US, n = 83) and 309 shoulders (MRI, n = 226; US, n = 83). Years of publication ranged from 1993 to 2006 for the MRI studies and from 2003 to 2018 for the US studies. Two studies had high risk of bias in terms of applicability to clinical practice because of patient selection. Five studies had potential risk of bias in two categories, whereas two had potential risk of bias in three categories. For all retears, mean sensitivity and specificity for MRI were 81.4% (95% CI, 73.3-87.5%) and 82.6% (95% CI, 76.3-87.5%) and 83.7% (95% CI, 67.4-92.7%) and 90.7% (95% CI, 73.6-97.1%) for US. For full-thickness retears, mean sensitivity and specificity for MRI were 85.9% (95% CI, 80.2-90.2%) and 89.1% (95% CI, 84.6-92.4%) and 89.7% (95% CI, 75.6-96.1%) and 91.0% (95% CI, 75.5-97.1%) for US. There was no significant difference in terms of sensitivity or specificity for either comparison (p = .28-.76). CONCLUSION. Our analyses revealed no significant difference between US and MRI for the diagnosis of rotator cuff tendon tears after prior cuff repair. CLINICAL IMPACT. Either MRI or US can be considered a first-line imaging option to assess suspected rotator cuff retear after prior repair.