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Purpose: Based on the recent literature, chest computed tomography (CT) examination could aid for management of patients during COVID-19 pandemic. However, the role of chest CT in management of COVID-19 patients is not exactly the same for medical or surgical specialties. In orthopaedic or trauma emergency, abdomen, pelvis, cervical, dorsal, and lumbar spine CT are performed to investigate patients; the result is a thoracic CT scan incorporating usually the thorax; however, information about lung parenchyma can be obtained on this thorax CT, and manifestations of COVID-19 can be diagnosed. The objective of our study was to evaluate this role in orthopedic patients to familiarize orthopaedists with the value and limits of thoracic CT in orthopaedic surgery., Materials and Methods: Among the 1397 chest CT scans performed during the pandemic period from 1 March 2020 to 10 May 2020, in two centres with orthopaedic surgery, we selected all the 118 thoracic or chest CT performed for patients who presented to the Emergency Department of the hospital with a diagnosis of trauma for orthopaedic surgical treatment. Thirty-nine of these 118 patients were tested with PCR for the diagnosis of COVID-19 infection. Depending on clinical status (symptomatic or non-symptomatic), the information useful for the orthopaedist surgeon and obtained from the Chest CT scan according to the result of the PCR (gold standard) was graded from 0 (no or low value) to 3 (high value). The potential risks of chest CT as exposure to radiation, and specific pathway were analyzed and discussed. A group of patients treated during a previous similar period (1 March 2018 to 15 April 2018) was used as control for evaluation of the increase of CT scanning during the COVID-19 pandemic., Results: Among the 118 patients with chest CT, there were 16 patients with positive COVID-19 chest CT findings, and 102 patients with negative chest CT scan. With PCR results as reference, the sensitivity, specificity, positive predictive value of chest CT in indicating COVID-19 infection were 81%, 93%, and 86%, respectively (p = 0.001). A useful information for the orthopaedic surgeon (graded as 1 for 71 cases, as 2 for 5 cases, and as 3 for 11 cases) was obtained from 118 chest CT scans for 87 (74%) patients, while the CT was no value in 30 (25%) cases, and negative value in one (1%) case. Roughly 20% of the total number of CT scanner performed over the pandemic period was dedicated to COVID-19, but only 2% were for orthopaedic or trauma patients. However, this was ten times higher than during the previous control period of comparison., Conclusion: Although extremely valuable for surgery management, these results should not be overstated. The CT findings studied are not specific for COVID-19, and the positive predictive value of CT will be low unless disease prevalence is high, which was the case during this period.

The main objective of this review was to present a synthesis of the current literature in order to provide a useful tool to clinician in radiologic analysis of the meniscus. All anatomical descriptions were clearly illustrated by MRI, arthroscopy, and/or drawings. The value of standard radiography is extremely limited for the assessment of meniscal injuries but may be indicated to obtain a differential diagnosis such as osteoarthritis. Ultrasound is rarely used as a diagnostic tool for meniscal pathologies and its accuracy is operator-dependent. CT arthrography with multiplanar reconstructions can detect meniscus tears that are not visible on MRI. This technique is also useful in case of MRI contraindications, in postoperative assessment of meniscal sutures and the condition of cartilage covering the articular surfaces. MRI is the most accurate and less invasive method for diagnosing meniscal lesions. MRI allows confirming and characterizing the meniscal lesion, the type, the extension, its association with a cyst, the meniscal extrusion, and assessing cartilage and subchondral bone. New 3D-MRI in three dimensions with isotropic resolution allows the creation of multiplanar reformatted images to obtain from an acquisition in one sectional plane reconstructions in other spatial planes. 3D MRI should further improve the diagnosis of meniscal tears.

Purpose: The main purpose of this study was to evaluate the usefulness of the bell-hammer sign in the diagnosis of partial tears of the anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) of the knee on MRI., Methods: A retrospective study was performed including all patients who underwent ACL reconstruction for partial or complete tears from 2008 to 2009. The diagnosis of partial or complete ACL tears was based on the appearance of the ligament bundles and the signal quality on MRI. On arthroscopy, which is considered the gold standard, each bundle was classified as normal, partially or completely torn depending on the extent of the rupture and the quality of the remaining fibres. The study included 312 patients, 83 women and 229 men (mean age 33.3 ± 19.6 years). A diagnosis of a tear was made in all patients on preoperative MRI. Arthroscopy did not show any normal ACL, 247/312 (79.2 %) complete tears and 65/312 (20.8%) partial tears, 50/65 (76.9%) on the anteromedial bundle (AM) and 15/65 (23.1%) the posterolateral bundle., Results: The bell-hammer sign was found on MRI in 13/312 patients (4.5%). It involved 9/65 (13.8%) partial tears, all in the AM bundle, and 4/247 (1.6%) complete tears, significantly more frequent in cases of partial rupture (p < 0.0001). MRI diagnosed a partial tear in 15/65 cases without the bell-hammer sign (sensitivity CI 95% = 23.1 ± 10%, specificity CI 95% = 95.9 ± 2.5%) and with the bell-hammer sign in 23/65 cases (sensitivity CI 95% = 35.4 ± 11%, specificity CI 95% = 93.9 ± 3%). The association of the bell-hammer sign with conventional radiological diagnostic criteria has improved diagnosis performance of MRI for partial tears but not significantly (ns)., Conclusion: The most important interest of the bell-hammer sign in the day-to-day clinical work is to suggest partial tears on MRI. It aids making a diagnosis, but its absence does not exclude partial ACL rupture., Level of Evidence: Diagnostic study, Level II.

Purpose: The main goal of this study was to compare the results of the GNRB(®) arthrometer to those of Telos™ in the diagnosis of partial thickness tears of the anterior cruciate ligament (ACL)., Methods: A prospective study performed January-December 2011 included all patients presenting with a partial or full-thickness ACL tears without ACL reconstruction and with a healthy contralateral knee. Anterior laxity was measured in all patients by the Telos™ and GNRB(®) devices. This series included 139 patients, mean age 30.7 ± 9.3 years. Arthroscopic reconstruction was performed in 109 patients, 97 for complete tears and 12 single bundle reconstructions for partial thickness tears. Conservative treatment was proposed in 30 patients with a partial thickness tear. The correlation between the two devices was evaluated by the Spearman coefficient. The optimal laxity thresholds were determined with ROC curves, and the diagnostic value of the tests was assessed by the area under the curve (AUC)., Results: The differential laxities of full and partial thickness tears were significantly different with the two tests. The correlation between the results of laxity measurement with the two devices was fair, with the strongest correlation between Telos™ 250 N and GNRB(®) 250 N (r = 0.46, p = 0.00001). Evaluation of the AUC showed that the informative value of all tests was fair with the best results with the GNRB(®) 250 N: AUC = 0.89 [95 % CI 0.83-0.94]. The optimal differential laxity threshold with the GNRB(®) 250 N was 2.5 mm (Se = 84 %, Sp = 81 %)., Conclusion: The diagnostic value of GNRB(®) was better than Telos™ for ACL partial thickness tears.

Purpose: To compare the performance of 3D-FSE-Cube MRI to arthroscopy, the reference test for the diagnosis of partial anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) tears., Methods: A retrospective study was performed including all patients who underwent surgery for an ACL tear in our Sports Surgery Unit from January 2008 to December 2009. All patients underwent a preoperative MRI, conventional 2D or 3D-Cube. The diagnosis of a partial tear was based on the appearance of the ligament bundles and signal quality on MRI, and on the continuity of the fibers on arthroscopy and the quality of the remaining ligament. Sixty-four of the 312 included patients underwent MRI 3D-Cube and 248 conventional 2D-MRI. The series included 82 women and 223 men, mean age 33.3 ± 19.6 years. Arthroscopy did not reveal any normal ACL, 247/312 (79.2 %) complete tears, and 65/312 (20.8 %) partial tears, with 50/65 (76.9 %) involving the anteromedial bundle and 15/65 (23.1 %) the posterolateral., Results: The results of MRI 3D-Cube were as follows: sensitivity 95 % CI = 62.5 ± 23.7 %, specificity 95 % CI = 93.7 ± 6.9 %, likelihood ratio LR(+) = 9.9, LR(-) = 0.4 and accuracy 85.9 %. Results of conventional 2D-MRI were as follows: sensitivity 95 % CI = 10.2 ± 8.5 %, specificity 95 % CI = 96.5 ± 2.5 %, LR(+) = 2.9, LR(-) = 0.9 and accuracy 79.4 %. The diagnostic performance of MRI 3D-Cube was better than conventional 2D-MRI., Conclusion: The diagnostic performance of MRI 3D-Cube in partial ACL tears was good and significantly better than conventional 2D-MRI. The likelihood of having a positive test was 9.9 times higher in a patient with a partial tear. A negative result did not exclude this diagnosis.

Background: Pigmented villo-nodular synovitis (PVNS) is an uncommon proliferative condition of the synovial membrane that chiefly affects the knee. Arthroscopic synovectomy may carry lower morbidity rates but higher recurrence rates than open synovectomy. Here, our objective was to evaluate recurrence rates and functional outcomes after primary arthroscopic synovectomy for PVNS of the knee., Hypothesis: Primary arthroscopic synovectomy preserves knee function while producing low recurrence and complication rates., Materials and Methods: We retrospectively included consecutive patients with histologically documented PVNS managed with primary arthroscopic synovectomy at two centres between 1998 and 2011. Twenty-three patients, 13 men and 10 women with a mean age of 41 ± 12 years, were reviewed including 16 patients with nodular and 7 with diffuse form of this disease. Patients with localized disease underwent partial synovectomy and those with diffuse disease complete synovectomy followed by chemical synovectomy of any residual lesions. The primary outcome measure was recurrence. Secondary outcome measures were the Tegner-Lysholm and Ogilvie-Harris scores., Results: Follow-up data were obtained after a mean of 7 ± 4 years in 21 patients (14 with nodular and 7 with diffuse disease), of whom 2 had recurrences, after 2 and 5 years, respectively. At last follow-up, neither patient had any evidence of recurrence. The mean Tegner-Lysholm score was significantly improved (from 68 ± 10 to 90 ± 8, P=0.0004) and the mean Ogilvie-Harris score indicated excellent function (11 ± 1)., Discussion: Primary arthroscopic synovectomy ensures satisfactory control of PVNS while preserving knee function. A full recovery remains possible even in patients with diffuse disease. In the event of a recurrence, open synovectomy can be performed., (Copyright © 2013 Elsevier Masson SAS. All rights reserved.)

Purpose: Although the treatment of choice for acute proximal hamstring ruptures is now surgical repair, this technique is relatively new and requires further evaluation. Our hypothesis was that patients return to sports at the same level after surgical repair as before injury., Methods: From 2002 to 2011, a prospective observational study including 34 patients, mean age 39.3 ± 11.4 years old underwent surgical repair of an acute proximal hamstring rupture. Surgical, rehabilitation and follow-up protocols were standardized. Mean follow-up was 27.2 ± 22.9 months and there were no lost to follow-up. The primary outcome was the level of activity on the UCLA and Tegner scores., Results: The mean UCLA score was 9.1 ± 1.3 before injury and 8.7 ± 1.7 at the final follow-up (p = 0.03). The median Tegner activity level was 6 (range, 4-10) before injury and 6 (range, 3-10) at the final follow-up (p = 0.05). The two scores were correlated (r = 0.76, p = 0.00001). Patients returned to sports within a mean 5.7 ± 1.6 months, at the same level in 27 patients (79.4 %) and at a lower level in 7 patients (20.6 %). The average hamstring/quadriceps ratio at 240°/second was 54.7 ± 8.6 % which was positively correlated to the level of activity on the UCLA score (r = 0.49, n.s.). The level of satisfaction was related to their level of activity at the final follow-up (p = 0.03)., Conclusion: Although surgical repair of acute proximal hamstring ruptures has significantly improved the functional prognosis of patients it remains a serious condition that can compromise future sports activities., Level of Evidence: Case-control study, Level III.

MRI spectroscopy is a non invasive method for detecting active metabolites used as markers. Chorine and citrate are used for analyzing prostate cancer. MRI spectroscopy combines morphologic imaging and metabolic cartography. This combination allows a new approach for the diagnosis of prostate cancer in patients with negative biopsy and high Levels of PSA. With MRI spectroscopy the Local staging of prostate cancer has a better accuracy than with MRI alone. It can also be used for the diagnosis of residual disease and recurrence in patients treated with conservative therapy.

Primary leiomyosarcoma of bone is a rarely reported tumor of elderly subjects. It usually shows an aggressive osteolytic pattern on plain radiographs and involves predominantly the metaphyses of long bones. We report a case of primary leiomyosarcoma of bone, which is atypical by its epiphyseal location, a non-aggressive pattern on plain radiographs and its MR imaging features.

Purpose: To distinguish malignant from osteoporotic acute vertebral collapses., Materials and Methods: Sixty-three osteoporotic and 30 malignant vertebral collapses were studied in 51 patients (aged 33-88 years) with T1-weighted magnetic resonance (MR) images (n=93), gadolinium-enhanced T1-weighted images (n=72), and T2-weighted images (n=53)., Results: Four findings were suggestive of osteoporosis: retropulsion of a bone fragment (10 osteoporotic cases vs 0 malignant cases), preservation of normal signal intensity on T1-weighted images (43 vs four), return to normal signal intensity after gadolinium injection (42 vs four) with horizontal bandlike patterns, and isointense vertebrae on T2-weighted images (28 vs two). Six findings were suggestive of malignancy: convex posterior cortex (21 malignant cases vs four osteoporotic cases), epidural mass (24 vs 0), diffuse low signal intensity within the vertebral body on T1-weighted images (23 vs 12) and in the pedicles (24 vs four), high or inhomogeneous signal intensity after gadolinium injection (17 vs 0) and on T2-weighted images (17 vs 0)., Conclusion: Gadolinium-enhanced and unenhanced MR images are useful in the differentiation of vertebral collapses.

Purpose of the Study: We present the results of an original technique for reconstruction of valgus-impacted humeral head using autologous iliac bone., Material and Methods: Between 1992 and 1993, 8 patients (average age 66 years, range 43 to 79 years) with four-part valgus impacted proximal humeral fractures were operated with the aim of preserving the humeral head. All fractures were treated with open reduction and were stabilized only with autologous bone. This procedure provided fixation without osteosynthesis. Using a deltopectoral approach the impacted segment of the humeral head was raised, the void was filled with autologous three-cortical iliac bone graft, and the tuberosities were relocated with the goal of anatomic reconstruction. The assessment included clinical examination including Constant's score, radiographic examination and MRI examination. Only one patient was not available for the review at follow-up evaluation (minimum 12 months, average 16 months)., Results: According to Constant's criteria, two results were excellent, two very good, one good, one fair and one patient were considered failure. Average Constant's score was 62; average score in comparison with the healthy side was 76 per cent. Radiographic findings showed in all cases healing and incorporation of the graft. MRI results showed only one asymptomatic partial avascular necrosis (14 per cent)., Discussion: This specific type of displaced four-part fracture of the proximal humerus which consists of valgus impaction of the head fragment without lateral displacement has a rate of avascular necrosis lower than that of other displaced four-part fractures. Blood supply of the articular segment is maintained via the periosteum extending to the medial part of the anatomic humeral neck. These data authorized the authors to propose a new conservative treatment for four-part valgus impacted proximal humeral fractures.

This article details many of the latest developments in the field of musculoskeletal interventional radiology. Some of the topics included in this discussion are percutaneous biopsy of musculoskeletal lesions, automated percutaneous discectomy, facet joint arthrography, percutaneous vertebroplasty, and percutaneous drainage of abscesses.

Nuclear magnetic resonance has shed new light on our understanding of osteonecrosis of the femoral head. It is at present the most sensitive and most specific imaging technique for the diagnosis of this condition. Studies involving correlations between MR images and anatomical findings have facilitated the understanding of tissue changes responsible for magnetic appearances. However, all problems are not resolved. At an early stage, fortunately almost always asymptomatic, false negative MRI or MR findings similar to those of algoneurodystrophy of the hip can be encountered. The aim of this article is to pinpoint the current status of these questions on the basis of a review of the recent literature. The contribution of MRI with injection of Gadolinium and future prospects are also discussed.

This study of the topographic distribution of tumoral and pseudotumoral lesions of the proximal femur shows that certain lesions have a preferential site, for example osteoid osteoma affects the internal cortex of the neck and diaphysis or the intertrochanteric zone; chondroblastoma occurs in zones of epiphyseal ossification of the head; fibrous dysplasia affects the femoral neck, while sparing the epiphyseal femoral head and trochanters. The island of osteosclerosis is situated, at least partially, in the support fan; so-called physiological cysts are situated on or above the midline of the neck and below the basicapital line. Osteolytic or mixed metastases preferentially involve Ward's triangle in the femoral neck and the intertrochanteric region. The sites of these lesions therefore appears to depend on the bony architecture which, in turn, is dependent on mechanical stresses. However, this purely morphological study fails to demonstrate whether mechanical stresses influence the development of these lesions.

The authors review the embryology of the hip joint with its pathological implications. The radioanatomy is presented in an elementary fashion, with the appearance of each component as seen on the various imaging techniques (conventional X-rays, CT scan, MRI). The authors also describe the views used in conventional radiology and the invasive techniques of arthrography and arthroscanning.

Plain X-rays and Lecler's manoeuvre constitute the essential basic assessment in the diagnostic approach to lesions of the rotator cuff. The preoperative assessment of the lesions and the search for associated lesions are based on more or less invasive investigations. For many years, arthrography was the reference examination to establish a precise assessment, but was sometimes insufficient for the diagnosis of small partial non-communicating lesions and certain longstanding massive ruptures. Ultrasonography is an attractive non-invasive technique, but the quality of the results depends on the operator's experience. Although computed tomography and CT arthrography provide a perfect analysis of the anterior aspect of the cuff and evaluate the trophicity of the muscles, they are difficult to interpret, irradiating and sometimes incomplete. MRI, a non-invasive and non-irradiating technique, is the modality of choice due to its excellent contrast resolution and the possibility of multidirectional studies and a spatial resolution which is continually improved by new acquisition sequences and the use of better adapted surface coils.