The sonographic squeeze test: Assessing the reliability of the dorsal scapholunate ligament

Background: There is no universally accepted imaging method to diagnose scapholunate ligament (SLL) tears. Our aim was to use sonography to evaluate the reliability of SLL length at baseline compared with a standardized dynamometer maneuver in healthy normals. Materials and methods: Sonographic exams from 31 consented asymptomatic patients between 18 years and 45 years of age were collected on a total of 60 wrists. The length of the SLL was measured superficially and at a depth of 3.0mm during static and dynamic squeeze maneuver. Inter- and intraexaminer reliability was performed using the intraclass correlation coefficient (ICC). Results: The superficial ligament length measured 0.60cm±0.11cm with a deep measurement of 0.20cm±0.06cm. Dynamic evaluation revealed superficial and deep measurements at 0.62±0.12cm and 0.20±0.06cm, respectively. There was no significant difference between the SLL length at rest and during the squeeze test. The interexaminer and intraexaminer reliability was rated at fair to very good. Conclusion: The evaluation of the dorsal SLL by sonographic squeeze test is reliable. Future studies will apply this method to suspected SLL tears. © 2013.