Donna G. Blankenbaker

Greater trochanter pain syndrome due to tendinopathy or bursitis is a common cause of hip pain. The previously reported magnetic resonance (MR) findings of trochanteric tendinopathy and bursitis are peritrochanteric fluid and abductor tendon abnormality. We have often noted peritrochanteric high T2 signal in patients without trochanteric symptoms. The purpose of this study was to determine whether the MR findings of peritrochanteric fluid or hip abductor tendon pathology correlate with trochanteric pain. We retrospectively reviewed 131 consecutive MR examinations of the pelvis (256 hips) for T2 peritrochanteric signal and abductor tendon abnormalities without knowledge of the clinical symptoms. Any T2 peritrochanteric abnormality was characterized by size as tiny, small, medium, or large; by morphology as feathery, crescentic, or round; and by location as bursal or intratendinous. The clinical symptoms of hip pain and trochanteric pain were compared to the MR findings on coronal, sagittal, and axial T2 sequences using chi-square or Fisher’s exact test with significance assigned as p < 0.05. Clinical symptoms of trochanteric pain syndrome were present in only 16 of the 256 hips. All 16 hips with trochanteric pain and 212 (88%) of 240 without trochanteric pain had peritrochanteric abnormalities (p = 0.15). Eighty-eight percent of hips with trochanteric symptoms had gluteus tendinopathy while 50% of those without symptoms had such findings (p = 0.004). Other than tendinopathy, there was no statistically significant difference between hips with or without trochanteric symptoms and the presence of peritrochanteric T2 abnormality, its size or shape, and the presence of gluteus medius or minimus partial thickness tears. Patients with trochanteric pain syndrome always have peritrochanteric T2 abnormalities and are significantly more likely to have abductor tendinopathy on magnetic resonance imaging (MRI). However, although the absence of peritrochanteric T2 MR abnormalities makes trochanteric pain syndrome unlikely, detection of these abnormalities on MRI is a poor predictor of trochanteric pain syndrome as these findings are present in a high percentage of patients without trochanteric pain.

Hip pain is a common condition with many etiologies, and the workup often includes imaging. The iliopsoas musculotendinous unit is becoming more frequently recognized as the culprit for hip pain, partially due to the increase in athletic activity in the general population as well as to the increased demand in professional sports. Iliopsoas tendon injuries are also seen in the elderly population and documented as occurring following total hip replacement. Iliopsoas diseases, often overlooked as a cause of hip pain, include tendinosis, snapping tendon, bursitis, tears, and avulsion injuries. This article reviews the normal magnetic resonance imaging and sonographic anatomy of the iliopsoas musculotendinous unit and the imaging characteristics of diseases that involve the iliopsoas musculotendinous unit. We review the causes of a snapping hip and the role of sonography in evaluating and guiding treatment of the snapping iliopsoas tendon.

OBJECTIVE. We developed an animal model of bone injury to determine the timing of the MR appearance of bone bruises and to follow these changes over time.MATERIALS AND METHODS. We performed serial MRI of 16 knees of eight swine with one nontraumatized knee as a control and 15 knees traumatized by direct patellar impact injuries using a force-calibrated device. All knees were imaged on a 1.5-T scanner using an 8-channel phased-array coil with T1-weighted, fat-saturated T2-weighted and STIR sequences. Scanning was performed at 1, 6, 12, and 30 hours after impact injury. Two radiologists independently reviewed each MR examination to identify MR signal intensity changes in the patellae and adjacent femoral condyles.RESULTS. In the 15 traumatized knees, bone bruises were noted in 93% of the patellae on T1-weighted images and in 87% of the patellae on fluid-sensitive MR images at 1 hour after injury and in 100% of the patellae at 6 hours. T1-weighted images were insensitive for detection of bone bruises in the ...

The purpose of this study was to compare the findings on hip MR arthrography (MRA) with the published MRA and arthroscopic classifications of hip labral tears and to evaluate a clock-face method for localizing hip labral tears. We retrospectively reviewed 65 hip MRA studies with correlative hip arthroscopies. Each labrum was evaluated on MRA using the classification system of Czerny and an MRA modification of the Lage arthroscopic classification. In addition, each tear was localized on MRA by using a clock-face description where 6 o’clock was the transverse ligament and 3 o’clock was anterior. These MRA findings were then correlated with the arthroscopic findings using the clock-face method of localization and the Lage arthroscopic classification of labral tears. At MRA, there were 42 Czerny grade 2 and 23 grade 3 labral tears and 22 MRA Lage type 1, 11 type 2, 22 type 3 and 10 type 4 tears. At arthroscopy, there were 10 Lage type 1 flap tears, 20 Lage type 2 fibrillated tears, 18 Lage type 3 longitudinal peripheral tears and 17 Lage type 4 unstable tears. The Czerny MRA classification and the modified MRA Lage classification had borderline correlation with the arthroscopic Lage classification. Localization of the tears using a clock-face description was within 1 o’clock of the arthroscopic localization of the tears in 85% of the patients. The Lage classification, which is the only published arthroscopic classification system for hip labral tears, does not correlate well with the Czerny MRA or an MRA modification of the Lage classification. Using a clock-face description to localize tears provides a way to accurately localize a labral tear and define its extent.

Hip pain is a common condition, and the work-up often includes imaging. This article reviews the normal MR anatomy of the hip and the imaging findings of internal derangements, snapping hip, and femoral acetabular impingement. We will describe the role of MR arthrography in evaluating the patient with suspected labral and articular cartilage abnormalities, as well as the pitfalls in interpretation. We will review the causes of a snapping hip, and the role of sonography in evaluating and guiding treatment of the snapping iliopsoas tendon. We will also review the radiographic and MRI signs of femoroacetabular impingement (FAI), a cause of early degenerative joint disease and hip pain.

Objective The purpose of this study was to compare sonographic evaluations of patients referred with suspected snapping of their iliopsoas tendon with the pain relief achieved from anesthetic injection of the iliopsoas bursa, and with the subsequent surgical outcome. This study also assessed the effectiveness of Kenalog injection into the iliopsoas bursa for long-term pain relief. Patients and methods Dynamic and static sonography was performed in 40 patients with clinically diagnosed snapping hips. The iliopsoas bursa was injected with Bupivicaine and Lidocaine in the first 22 patients, and an additional 1 ml Kenalog-40 was added to this mixture in the last 18 patients. We compared the static and dynamic sonographic findings with change in the patients’ level of pain at 2 days after anesthetic injection. The sonographic findings and response to anesthetic injection were also compared to the response to Kenalog injection and the results of any subsequent surgery. Results Static sonography of the iliopsoas tendon was normal in 38 patients, and detected iliopsoas bursitis in one patient and iliopsoas tendinopathy in another. Snapping of the iliopsoas tendon was observed using dynamic sonography in 9 of the 40 patients. Following anesthetic injection of the iliopsoas bursa, 29 patients had complete or partial pain relief, and 11 patients had no pain relief. Eight of the nine patients with a snapping iliopsoas tendon had complete or partial pain relief from the bursal injection. Twelve of the 29 patients with pain relief after anesthetic injection later had an arthroscopic iliopsoas tendon release, and all of these 12 patients had a good postoperative result. Of the 18 patients who had Kenalog-40 injected into the iliopsoas bursa and did not have iliopsoas surgery, 16 had sustained pain relief following the injection. Conclusions Patients with groin pain and a clinically suspected snapping iliopsoas tendon can benefit from injection into the iliopsoas bursa even if the snapping tendon is not visualized sonographically. The use of a corticosteroid may provide long-term pain relief, and pain relief after injection is a predictor of good outcome after surgical release of the iliopsoas tendon.