SynthesisKnee surgery, sports traumatology, arthroscopy : official journal of the ESSKA2019
High performance of critical shoulder angle for diagnosing rotator cuff tears on radiographs.
Synthesis in Knee surgery, sports traumatology, arthroscopy : official journal of the ESSKA, 2019. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 16 papers, 1 of them a synthesis that pooled it.
What it found
Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.
The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.
Who cites it
16 citing papers in PubMed, 1 synthesis or guideline pooled it, 36 citations in OpenAlex.
- Does the critical shoulder angle decrease after acromioplasty? A systematic review and meta-analysis.Journal of orthopaedic surgery and research · 2022Pooled it
- There is a relationship between the acromial index, the critical shoulder angle, and rotator cuff tears.Musculoskeletal surgery · 2026Article
- Radiographic Assessment of Glenoid Morphology and Its Association with Proximal Humeral Fracture Configuration.Journal of clinical medicine · 2026Article
- Article
- Elevated Critical Shoulder Angle and Acromion Index as Predictors of Symptomatic Rotator Cuff Tears: A Comparative Case-Control Study.Indian journal of orthopaedics · 2025Article
- Article
- Clinical effect of modified anterolateral acromioarthroplasty during arthroscopic rotator cuff repair.BMC musculoskeletal disorders · 2024Article
- Role of Critical Shoulder Angle in Degenerative Type Rotator Cuff Tears: A Turkish Cohort Study.Medical science monitor : international medical journal of experimental and clinical research · 2024Article
- Impact of critical shoulder angle in shoulder pathology: a current concepts review.JSES international · 2024Review
- Enhancing prediction of supraspinatus/infraspinatus tendon complex injuries through integration of deep visual features and clinical information: a multicenter two-round assessment study.Insights into imaging · 2023Article
- The Critical Shoulder Angle Can be Accurately and Reliably Determined from Three-Dimensional Computed Tomography Images.Orthopaedic surgery · 2023Article
- Radiological and clinical evaluation of long head of biceps tendon function in the glenohumeral joint.Joint diseases and related surgery · 2023Article
- The critical shoulder angle, the acromial index, the glenoid version angle and the acromial angulation are associated with rotator cuff tears.Knee surgery, sports traumatology, arthroscopy : official journal of the ESSKA · 2021Article
- Evaluation of critical shoulder angle and acromion index in patients with anterior shoulder instability and rotator cuff tear.Acta orthopaedica et traumatologica turcica · 2021Article
- Effect of arthroscopic acromioplasty on reducing critical shoulder angle: a protocol for a prospective randomized clinical trial.BMC musculoskeletal disorders · 2020Article
- The association between a low critical shoulder angle and SLAP lesions.Knee surgery, sports traumatology, arthroscopy : official journal of the ESSKA · 2019Article
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
4 authors at 3 institutions in 1 country.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
purposePrevious studies have reported that a high critical shoulder angle (CSA) is associated with rotator cuff tears (RCTs). However, the available evidence concerning the strength of the association of these parameters with the pathogenesis of RCTs is conflicting. The aim in the present meta-analysis was to assess the diagnostic performance of CSA for detecting RCTs.
methodsThe PubMed and EMBASE databases were searched for diagnostic accuracy studies of CSA for detecting RCT. Quality of the included studies was assessed using the Quality Assessment of Diagnostic Accuracy Studies-2 tool. We calculated the pooled diagnostic accuracy of CSA, including diagnostic odd ratios (DORs) with 95% confidence intervals (CIs). Bivariate random-effect modeling with forest plots and hierarchical summary receiver operating characteristic curves was performed to evaluate the pooled sensitivity and specificity of CSA. For heterogeneity exploration, we performed meta-regression analyses.
resultsEight studies including 902 patients (460 patients with RCT and 442 control patients) were included. According to DOR, CSA was an informative feature for RCT (DOR 8; 95% CI 4-16). The overall diagnostic performance of CSA for RCT was good (sensitivity 71% [95% CI 61-80%]; specificity, 77% [95% CI 65-86%]). Meta-regression analyses revealed that the sensitivity of CSA could be higher for differentiating full-thickness RCTs and normal patients. Furthermore, the specificity of CSA could be higher using a cut-off value of 35°.
conclusionCSA on plain radiographs has good diagnostic performance for RCTs. A cut-off value of 35° is recommended for more accurate diagnosis of full-thickness RCTs. Measuring CSA on plain radiographs may provide clinicians with a readily available and reliable method for detecting RCT in daily practice. LEVEL OF EVIDENCE: Diagnostic studies, Level III.
Indexed as
Identifiers
What OpenQuestion holds
Registered trials
Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.