An ultrasound score for knee osteoarthritis: a cross-sectional validation study

https://doi.org/10.1016/j.joca.2014.06.020Get rights and content
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Summary

Objective

To develop standardized musculoskeletal ultrasound (MUS) procedures and scoring for detecting knee osteoarthritis (OA) and test the MUS score's ability to discern various degrees of knee OA, in comparison with plain radiography and the ‘Knee injury and Osteoarthritis Outcome Score’ (KOOS) domains as comparators.

Method

A cross-sectional study of MUS examinations in 45 patients with knee OA. Validity, reliability, and reproducibility were evaluated.

Results

MUS examination for knee OA consists of five separate domains assessing (1) predominantly morphological changes in the medial compartment, (2) predominantly inflammation in the medial compartment, (3) predominantly morphological changes in the lateral compartment, (4) predominantly inflammation in the lateral compartment, and (5) effusion. MUS scores displayed substantial reliability and reproducibility, with interclass correlations coefficients ranging from 0.75 to 0.97 for the five domains. Construct validity was confirmed with statistically significant correlation coefficients (0.47–0.81, P < 0.01).

Conclusion

The MUS score suggested in this study was reliable and valid in detecting knee OA. In comparison with standing radiographs of the knees, the score detected all aspects of knee OA with relevant precision.

Keywords

Knee osteoarthritis
Musculoskeletal ultrasound
Clinical outcome
KOOS
Kellgren–Lawrence score

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