ArticleCureus2022
Diagnostic Dilemma: Which Clinical Tests Are Most Accurate for Diagnosing Supraspinatus Muscle Tears and Tendinosis When Compared to Magnetic Resonance Imaging?
Article in Cureus, 2022. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 3 papers.
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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.
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Who cites it
3 citing papers in PubMed, 5 citations in OpenAlex.
- Article
- Advances in Shoulder Pain Imaging: A Narrative Review of Current Practice and Emerging Trends.Current medical imaging · 2025Article
- Effectiveness of Adding a Pain Neuroscience Education Program to a Multimodal Physiotherapy Intervention in Patients with Chronic Shoulder Pain: A Randomized Clinical Trial.Brain sciences · 2025Article
Corrections and comments
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Authors and funding
5 authors at 2 institutions in 3 countries.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
backgroundThe study aims to investigate the diagnostic accuracy of five clinical shoulder tests in the diagnosis of supraspinatus tears and tendinosis when compared to magnetic resonance imaging (MRI).
methodsA total of 116 shoulders of 106 consecutive patients who experienced shoulder pain were assessed for this cross-sectional diagnostic accuracy study. Patients were assessed with the most commonly used clinical shoulder tests, including the Jobe test (empty can), Neer test, drop arm test, Hawkins test, and full can test to identify supraspinatus tears and tendinosis. MRI examinations were performed on a 1.5 Tesla MRI system, and images were assessed by a blinded radiologist. The primary outcomes were to determine the sensitivity, specificity, and accuracy of the five clinical tests and to establish their correlation with MRI for supraspinatus tears and tendinosis.
resultsThe Hawkins test had a higher sensitivity and accuracy when diagnosing tears (sensitivity 89.66% [95% CI, 78.83-96.11] and accuracy 56.03% [95% CI, 46.51-65.23], respectively) and higher sensitivity in tendinosis (79.07% [95% CI, 63.96-89.96]). The drop arm test had a lower sensitivity but higher specificity in both tendinosis and tears (sensitivity 0% [95% CI, 0-8.22] and 12.07% [95% CI, 4.99-23.29], respectively, and specificity 87.67% [95% CI, 77.88-94.21] and 96.5% [95% CI, 88.09-99.58], respectively). The Neer test had a higher positive predictive value (PPV) of 37.21% in diagnosing tendinosis. When compared to the Hawkins test, the combination of the clinical tests had no statistically significant contribution to sensitivity and diagnostic accuracy.
conclusionThe Hawkins test had higher accuracy in diagnosing tears and was the most sensitive in diagnosing supraspinatus tendinosis and tears when compared to the MRI findings. The Neer test may also be another reliable tool for the diagnosis of tendinosis due to its higher PPV.
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