MRI evaluation of symptomatic total knee arthroplasties

Introduction: Symptomatic total knee arthroplasties with normal studies are a challenge for the orthopedic surgeon. Nuclear magnetic resonance could be an alternative to reach a correct diagnosis. The objective of the study was to evaluate the usefulness of nuclear magnetic resonance using optimized sequences in symptomatic total knee arthroplasties, and to perform an interobserver study to determine which anatomical structures are evaluable. Methods: We retrospectively evaluated 15 patients operated on between 2007 and 2012 who had periprosthetic pain and normal radiographs, scintigraphy and laboratory values undergoing MRI. An interobserver analysis using intraclass correlation and kappa coefficients was performed among four professionals, a resident of diagnostic imaging and an advanced Orthopedic resident, and two physicians with 20 years of practice, one in diagnostic imaging and the other in knee surgery. Results: Joint fluid was increased in 14 patients; we detected synovitis in four cases and a case of infrapatellar ossicle, but osteolysis was not found in any of the patients. The collateral ligaments could be evaluated properly in seven cases. The gastrocnemius, the subcutaneous tissue and the extensor apparatus were evaluated without difficulty. MRI found causes of pain in 12 cases. The intraclass correlation coefficient showed concordance for the medial collateral ligament, the extensor apparatus, twins and subcutaneous tissue. Conclusion: This study demonstrates the usefulness of the method in the decision-making process. The interobserver agreement was statistically significant for the analysis of the medial collateral ligament, gastrocnemius and subcutaneous tissue. (authors)