Radiology, Vol 160, 161-165, Copyright © 1986 by Radiological Society of North America
Rotator cuff lesions of the shoulder: evaluation by direct sagittal CT arthrography
J Beltran, LA Gray, JC Bools, W Zuelzer, LD Weis and LJ Unverferth
Direct sagittal computed tomographic scanning (DSCT) of the shoulder was
performed in 42 symptomatic patients, six healthy volunteers, and two
cadaver shoulders. Axial CT scanning and double-contrast arthrography with
plain radiographs were performed in 41 patients for comparison. DSCT
enabled correct identification of 27 of 29 lesions in 24 patients.
Seventeen patients had normal shoulders. Axial CT scanning and DSCT
together enabled correct identification of all lesions and were markedly
superior to plain-film arthrography. DSCT enabled diagnosis of all cases of
complete rotator cuff tear plus three cases of incomplete tear and three of
rotator cuff atrophy not identified by the other techniques. Axial CT
scanning was better than DSCT for diagnosis of Bankart lesions.
