Paediatric hip ultrasound.

Area of Science:

• Paediatric radiology
• Orthopaedic imaging

Background:

• Assessing hip ultrasound quality is crucial for accurate diagnosis of developmental dysplasia of the hip (DDH).
• Standardized interpretation protocols are essential for reliable assessment.

Purpose of the Study:

• To evaluate inter- and intraobserver agreement in interpreting paediatric hip ultrasound quality.
• To assess the reliability of geometric and morphological measurements in hip ultrasound.
• To explore the relationship between geometric and morphological assessments.

Main Methods:

• Four investigators assessed 60 hip ultrasounds, evaluating quality, morphology, and Graf grade.
• Geometric parameters and morphological features were measured and described.
• Intra- and interobserver agreement, and correlations were analyzed over a four-week period.

Main Results:

• Interobserver agreement for quality assessment was poor; intraobserver agreement was moderate to substantial.
• Geometric measurements showed nearly perfect agreement, with strong correlations between them.
• Morphological features had weak to moderate agreement, improving with simplified classification; Graf grade showed fair to moderate interobserver agreement.

Conclusions:

• Defining high-quality paediatric hip ultrasound remains difficult.
• Geometric measurements are reliable and may serve as a quality indicator.
• The diagnostic importance of morphological features in hip dysplasia warrants reconsideration due to poor interpretability and strong correlation with reliable geometric measurements.