Accuracy Of Physical Examination Tests Research Articles

Diagnostic Accuracy of Physical Examination Tests for Suspected Acute Anterior Cruciate Ligament Injury: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis.

BackgroundMany tests are used to examine the knee when anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) injury is suspected. However, evidence of diagnostic accuracy in the Lachman, anterior drawer, pivot shift, and lever sign tests is limited.PurposeThe purpose of this study was to perform a systematic review and meta-analysis of original research studies that assessed the diagnostic accuracy of four physical examination tests for ACL injury acutely after an injury.Study designSystematic review and meta-analysis.MethodsA literature search was conducted in the PubMed, MEDLINE, CINAHL, Web of Science, and Ichushi databases. Original articles with prospective cohort and cross-sectional studies in English and Japanese were included. The searched words were “anterior cruciate ligament”, “injury”,” rupture”,” tear”, “lachman test”, “pivot shift test”, “anterior drawer test”, “lever sign test”. The methodological quality of the diagnostic studies was evaluated using QUADAS-2. Summary sensitivity, specificity, likelihood ratio (LR)+, and LR– with 95% confidence intervals were calculated.ResultsEight studies were included in this review. The methodological quality of the included studies was mostly favorable. For the domain of flow and timing in the QUADAS-2, three studies did not assess the timing between the reference and index tests. The pooled sensitivities were 0.79, 0.78, 0.55, and 0.82 in the Lachman, anterior drawer, pivot shift, and lever sign tests, respectively, and the pooled specificities were 0.91, 0.91, 0.96, and 0.88, respectively. The lever sign test had the lowest LR− (0.21) and the pivot shift test had the highest LR+ (11.60). The area under the curve for the four physical examinations was > 0.70.ConclusionThe lever sign and pivot shift tests are useful for diagnosing ACL injuries in an acute setting.Level of EvidenceLevel 2

Effect of native ligament versus graft reconstruction on sensitivity of clinical tests used to diagnose anterior cruciate ligament tears

PurposeAlthough there have been multiple clinical studies evaluating the accuracy of physical examination tests used to diagnose anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) injury, there are no data to date evaluating the accuracy of these tests in diagnosing re-injury after prior ACL reconstruction. We compared the sensitivity of three clinical tests — Lachman, anterior drawer, and pivot shift — in diagnosing initial ACL tears versus graft re-tears following a prior ACL reconstruction. MethodsTwenty consecutive adult patients who had undergone primary ACL reconstruction and 20 consecutive adult patients who had undergone revision ACL reconstruction by a single surgeon at a tertiary care center from November 2011 to December 2017 were included in this study. ResultsThe sensitivity of the Lachman test was 95.0% in diagnosing ACL tears in patients with native ACL versus 85.0% in patients with prior ACL reconstruction with allograft or autograft. The sensitivity of the anterior drawer test was 80.0% in patients with native ACL compared to 77.8% in patients with prior ACL reconstructions. The sensitivity of the pivot shift test could not be accurately assessed because pain and swelling prevented the physician from performing this test in most patients on their initial presentation to the clinic. ConclusionsThis study suggests that a clinician may need to have a lower threshold to perform advanced imaging or diagnostic arthroscopic evaluation in a patient with prior ACL reconstruction with a suspected re-injury even if the physical examination tests are not immediately positive.

Diagnostic accuracy of examination tests for lateral elbow tendinopathy (LET) – A systematic review

BackgroundReviews on the diagnostic performance of the examination tests for lateral elbow tendinopathy (LET) based on updated context-specific tools and guidelines are missing. PurposeTo review the diagnostic accuracy of examination tests used in LET. DesignSystematic review following PRISMA-DTA guidelines. MethodsWe searched MEDLINE, PubMed, CINAHL, EMBASE, PEDro, ScienceDirect, and Cochrane Library databases. The QUADAS-2 checklist was used to assess the methodological quality of the eligible studies. We included diagnostic studies reporting the accuracy of physical examination tests or imaging modalities used in patients with LET. ResultsTwenty-four studies with 1370 participants were identified reporting the diagnostic performance of Ultrasound Imaging (USI) (18 studies), physical examination tests (2 studies) and Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI) (4 studies). Most studies (97%) were assessed with “unclear” or “high risk” of bias. Sonoelastography showed the highest sensitivity (75- 100%) and specificity (85- 96%). Grayscale with or without Doppler USI presented poor to excellent values (sensitivity: 53%-100%, specificity: 42%-90%). MRI performed better in the diagnosis of tendon thickening and enthesopathy (sensitivity and specificity: 81%-100%). The Cozen's test reported high sensitivity (91%) while a grip strength difference of 5%-10% between elbow flexion and extension showed high sensitivity (78%-83%) and specificity (80%-90%). ConclusionsCozen's test and grip strength measurement present high accuracy in the diagnosis of LET but are poorly investigated. USI and MRI provide variable diagnostic accuracy depending on the entities reported and should be recommended with caution when differential diagnosis is necessary. Substantial heterogeneity was found in inclusion criteria, operator/ examiner, mode of application, type of equipment and reference standards across the studies. Systematic review registrationPROSPERO ID CRD42020160402

Diagnostic Accuracy of Physical Examination Tests in Core Muscle Injury

Background: Core muscle injury (CMI), often referred to as a sports hernia, is a common cause of groin pain in athletes characterized by concomitant injury to the insertion of the adductor longus and the rectus abdominis muscles. Currently, the literature on CMI is sparse with no standardized physical examination tests used in the diagnosis of this type of injury. Purpose: To determine the diagnostic accuracy of various physical examination tests in the diagnosis of CMI. Study Design: Cohort study (Diagnosis); Level of evidence, 3. Methods: A consecutive series of patients evaluated by the senior author with symptoms consistent with CMI were included. Four physical examination tests were routinely performed in these patients by the senior author and were noted in each patient’s chart as positive or negative: (1) pain with resisted cross-body sit-up in figure-of-4 position, (2) pain with straight-leg sit-up, (3) pain with resisted hip flexion in external rotation (external rotation Stinchfield test), and (4) the presence of an adductor contracture. CMI was independently diagnosed by a reference standard (magnetic resonance imaging [MRI]). All MRI scans were read by a musculoskeletal fellowship-trained radiologist. The sensitivity and specificity of each physical examination test alone and in combination were calculated based on this reference standard. Results: A total of 81 patients were included in this study. MRI was positive for a CMI in 39 patients (48%) overall. Both the cross-body sit-up test and the presence of an adductor contracture were found to have a sensitivity of 100% (specificity, 3% for both). The external rotation Stinchfield test was found to have the highest specificity of 60% (sensitivity, 15%). The sensitivity of all 4 physical examination tests in combination was found to be 100% (specificity, 0%). Conclusion: Certain physical examination maneuvers can be used to assist in the diagnosis of a CMI. The cross-body sit-up test and the presence of an adductor contracture are highly sensitive but nonspecific tests for CMI and therefore should be used in conjunction with diagnostic imaging before deciding on an appropriate treatment course.

Physical Examination Tests for the Diagnosis of Posterior Cruciate Ligament Rupture: A Systematic Review

Systematic literature review. To summarize and evaluate research on the accuracy of physical examination tests for diagnosis of posterior cruciate ligament (PCL) tear. Rupture of the PCL is a severe knee injury that can lead to delayed rehabilitation, instability, or chronic knee pathologies. To our knowledge, there is currently no systematic review of studies on the diagnostic accuracy of clinical examination tests to evaluate the integrity of the PCL. A comprehensive systematic literature search was conducted in MEDLINE from 1946, Embase from 1974, and the Allied and Complementary Medicine Database from 1985 until April 30, 2012. Studies were considered eligible if they compared the results of physical examination tests performed in the context of a PCL physical examination to those of a reference standard (arthroscopy, arthrotomy, magnetic resonance imaging). Methodological quality assessment was performed by 2 independent reviewers using the revised version of the Quality Assessment of Diagnostic Accuracy Studies (QUADAS-2) tool. The search strategy revealed 1307 articles, of which 11 met the inclusion criteria for this review. In these studies, 11 different physical examination tests were identified. Due to differences in study types, different patient populations, and methodological quality, meta-analysis was not indicated. Presently, most physical examination tests have not been evaluated sufficiently enough to be confident in their ability to either confirm or rule out a PCL tear. The diagnostic accuracy of physical examination tests to assess the integrity of the PCL is largely unknown. There is a strong need for further research in this area. Level of Evidence Diagnosis, level 3a.

Physical examination tests of the shoulder: a systematic review with meta-analysis of individual tests

Objective:To compile and critique research on the diagnostic accuracy of individual orthopaedic physical examination tests in a manner that would allow clinicians to judge whether these tests are valuable to...