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Original Research |
1 Department of Radiology, Chang Gung Memorial Hospital at Kaohsiung, Chang Gung
University, 123 Ta-Pei Rd., Niao-Sung Hsiang, Kaohsiung Hsien 833,
Taiwan.
2 Department of Orthopedic Surgery, Chang Gung Memorial Hospital at Kaohsiung,
Chang Gung University, Kaohsiung Hsien, Taiwan.
3 Department of Pathology, Chang Gung Memorial Hospital at Kaohsiung, Chang Gung
University, Kaohsiung Hsien, Taiwan.
4 Department of Radiology, Chang Gung Memorial Hospital at Linkou, Chang Gung
University, Taoyuen Hsien, Taiwan.
5 Department of Public Health and Biostatistics, Chang Gung Memorial Hospital at
Kaohsiung, Chang Gung University, Kaohsiung Hsien, Taiwan.
Received June 8, 2004; accepted after revision October 15, 2004.
Address correspondence to S-F Ko
(sfatko{at}adm.cgmh.org.tw).
OBJECTIVE. This article evaluates the sonographic features of deltoid contracture (DC) with MRI correlation.
MATERIAL AND METHODS. Two reviewers evaluated the imaging features in 22 painful shoulders of 20 patients with a sonographic diagnosis of DC and a subsequent confirming MRI study. The sonographic and MRI findings with regard to the lesion extent (assessed by a 3-point scale: 1 = less than or equal to one third of the longitudinal deltoid length involved, 2 = greater than one third and less than or equal to two thirds involved, and 3 = greater than two thirds involved), transverse lesion morphologic appearance, and maximal transverse diameter measured were compared with kappa statistics and Wilcoxon's signed rank test, respectively.
RESULTS. Compared with MRI, there were two false-positive diagnoses of DC on sonography. Among the 20 true-positive diagnoses, sonography showed good agreement with MRI in assessing the lesion extent (kappa = 0.796, p < 0.001). Three sonographic lesion morphologic patterns for hyperechoic lesions (I = with multiple < 8-mm hypoechoic spots, II = heteroechoic lesions with predominant 8–15-mm hypointense areas, and III = > 15-mm calcified nodules, respectively) showed excellent agreement with three MRI lesion patterns (I = multiple < 8-mm hypointense spots, II = predominant 8–15-mm hypointense areas, and III = > 15-mm hypointense nodules, respectively) (kappa = 0.921, p < 0.001). However, the maximum lesion diameters appeared significantly larger on sonography than on MRI (2.8 ± 0.6 cm vs 2.0 ± 0.8 cm, mean ± SD; p < 0.001), which was plausibly ascribed to the better sonographic delineation of hyperechoic immature fibrotic tissues.
CONCLUSION. Sonography is helpful for evaluating DC and correlates well with MRI.
Contracture of the deltoid muscle usually is induced by repeated intramuscular injections and occasionally caused by congenital fibrosis or trauma [1–5]. Characteristic manifestations of deltoid contracture (DC) include a palpable fibrous cord within the deltoid muscle, skin dimpling overlying the fibrous cords, limitation of adduction and flexion of the glenohumeral joint, winging (lateroanterior rotation), or lateroinferior rotation of the scapula [1–5]. However, such typical clinical manifestations of DC or characteristic shoulder deformities frequently are not apparent [3–5]. Fibrous cord formation within the deltoid is the key finding for diagnosing DC. MRI has been reported as the best technique to delineate the hypointense fibrous cords in the deltoid muscle [1, 2]. However, the clinical application of sonography for the evaluation and diagnosis of DC is not well established. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the sonographic features of DC and their correlation with the findings of MRI.
Materials and Methods
Patients
From September 1999 to October 2003, a total of 457 shoulders of 427
patients (389 patients had unilateral and 34 bilateral sonographic studies,
depending on the request of the referring clinicians or surgeons) were
referred to our department for sonographic studies for suspected rotator cuff
tear or shoulder impingement in 393 shoulders (86%), calcific tendinitis in 37
(8.1%), nonspecific shoulder pain in 15 (3.3%), DC in 7 (1.5%), bicipital
tendon rupture in 3 (0.7%) and adhesive capsulitis in 2 (0.4%). Among these
457 shoulders, 22 shoulders in 20 patients showed sonographic findings
suggestive of DC. These patients were recruited for participation in this
study. Seven patients were male, and 13 patients were female. Their ages
ranged from 31 to 79 years (mean, 57.5 years). Fourteen left and eight right
shoulders were included. All patients underwent subsequent shoulder MRI (as a
reference standard) 14–21 days after their sonographic examination.
Informed consent for shoulder MRI was obtained from all patients before
examination but the institutional review board of this hospital did not
require approval for the retrospective review of patient records and images.
All patients had anteroposterior shoulder radiographs that were
retrospectively reviewed at the same time by two experienced radiologists.
Sonographic Examination
Sonography was performed by one of two radiologists who had 8–12
years' experience with musculoskeletal imaging. Shoulder sonographic
examinations were performed using an Aspen Advanced or a Sequoia 512 scanner
(Acuson) with a linear 8.5-MHz transducer. The patients were requested to sit
on a rotating stool with the arms hanging alongside the body. Apart from
examination of the rotator cuff, routine screening of the deltoid also was
performed. Anatomically, the deltoid is constructed of three portions,
including the anterior, intermediate, and posterior portions, which originate
from the clavicle, the acromion, and the scapular spine, respectively. All
three portions insert to the deltoid tuberosity of the humerus
[1,
2,
6]. Owing to different
directions of the alignment of the muscle fibers, these three deltoid portions
can be distinguished on sonography. To ensure a complete sonographic
evaluation, all shoulders were examined with a systemic approach. At the
beginning of the examination, transverse scanning of the whole length of the
intermediate portion of the deltoid muscle was performed stepwise from the
anterior to the posterior margin, with the sonographic probe proceeding
smoothly from the origin at the lateral acromial edge down to the insertion
site at the humeral tuberosity. Afterward, the whole intermediate portion was
examined again stepwise from the anterior margin to the posterior margin with
longitudinal scanning. The anterior and posterior portions of the deltoid then
were evaluated from the origins at the clavicle and the scapular spine to the
humeral tuberosity, respectively, in a similar manner, with special attention
in complete coverage of the whole portion from the medial to lateral aspects.
When normal fascial planes of the deltoid muscle including the intermuscular
tendons, linear structures of the perimysium and epimysium were clearly
identified (Fig. 1), the
deltoid muscle was considered normal. When these normal landmarks could not be
clearly seen, involvement of the upper, middle, and lower third of the muscles
was recorded and detailed identification of abnormal findings, including the
presence or absence of a masslike lesion, echogenicities, size and shape of
the intralesional components, and calcifications (hyperechoic foci with
acoustic shadow that subsequently could be confirmed on shoulder radiographs),
was performed. Finally, at the region with the maximal discernable lesion, an
image in transverse free-style extended view was obtained and the maximal
transverse lesion diameter was measured. Generally, the whole deltoid could be
studied thoroughly within 5 to 10 min.
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Imaging Analysis
Sonographic images were randomized and reviewed simultaneously by two
experienced musculoskeletal radiologists who reached a consensus agreement on
all findings. The following items were assessed: the presence or absence of a
masslike lesion in the deltoid muscle; the location of the lesion (anterior,
intermediate, or posterior portion of the deltoid muscle); lesion extent
(which was scored using a 3-point scale: 1= 
one third of the deltoid
length from the acromion to the deltoid insertion at the humeral tuberosity, 2
= > one-third and two thirds involved, 3 = > two thirds involved,
respectively); transverse intralesional morphologic appearances (intralesional
hypoechoic areas or calcifications); and transverse diameter of the maximal
discernable lesion. One month after the review of sonograms was completed, the
MR images were randomized and then reviewed by the same two radiologists until
a consensus agreement was reached for all findings. The diagnosis of DC was
established by visualization of typical hypointense cords
[1,
2] in the deltoid muscle on all
pulse sequences. Involvement of the anterior, intermediate, and/or posterior
portions of the deltoid muscle was determined. Similar to the analysis of the
sonograms, the extent of the hypointense cords in the upper, middle, and lower
third of the deltoid also was assessed with a 3-point scale. The
cross-sectional morphologic appearances of the hypointense cord on MRI were
characterized. The maximal lesion diameter measured using axial multiplanar
gradient-echo and the images was recorded. In addition to scrutinizing the
deltoid, other structures of the shoulder, especially the rotator cuff, also
were examined. On sonography, thickening of the rotator cuff with decreased
echogenicity was indicative of tendinitis. Rotator cuff with decreased
echogenicity, loss of convexity of tendon to bursal interface, and focal
thinning were indicative of partial thickness tear. Rotator cuff with focal
tendon interruption and hypoechoic gap, tendon retraction, and uncovered
humeral cartilage were indicative of full thickness tear. On MRI, rotator cuff
tendinosis was characterized by intact thickened tendon with intermediate
intensity on T1-weighted images and hyperintensity on T2-weighted images.
Partial thickness tear was characterized by focal areas of intermediate
intensity on T1-weighted images that corresponded to hyperintense fluid
filling of an incomplete gap of the tendon on T2-weighted images. Full
thickness tear was characterized by thickened indistinct rotator cuff tendon
on T1-weighted image with prominently hyperintense fluid intensity extended
through the entire thickness of the interrupted rotator cuff tendon on
T2-weighted images. Eventually, all shoulder radiographs were retrospectively
reviewed to compare findings with the presence or absence of deltoid
calcifications detected by sonography and to detect any metallic foreign
bodies that might induce artifacts on MRI.
Statistical Analysis
Kappa statistics were used to test the agreement of the lesion extent score
between sonography and MRI. A kappa value of less than 0.20 indicated poor
agreement; 0.21–0.40, fair agreement; 0.41–0.60, moderate
agreement; 0.61–0.80, good agreement; and 0.81–1.00, excellent
agreement. The agreement between the transverse morphologic appearances of DC
demonstrated on sonography and on axial MR images also was tested by kappa
statistics. Wilcoxon's signed rank test was used to compare the transverse
diameter of maximal discernable lesion measured on sonography and MRI. A
p value less than 0.05 was considered to indicate a statistically
significant difference.
The deltoid injection histories, clinical presentations, and surgical findings were reviewed by two radiologists and an orthopedic surgeon at the same time. Nine patients received surgical distal release of the DC and simultaneous resection of fibrotic cords was performed in four of them. Histopathologic specimens were reviewed by a radiologist and a pathologist together.
Results
All 20 patients had histories of repetitive intramuscular injections in the deltoid muscles but none of them was able to remember or had records available of the exact timing and number of injections. Only seven (35%) of the 20 patients were referred for shoulder sonography under an initial clinical impression of DC. Among them, two patients showed characteristic winging of the scapula, four had limited adduction of the glenohumeral joint, and one had a palpable mass in the deltoid. In another 11 patients, shoulder impingement was impressed due to pain and restricted range of shoulder motion. In the remaining two patients, one suffered from the deltoid muscle pain for 1 week after intramuscular injection and one suffered from shoulder pain for 3 weeks after shoulder sprain. Initial sonograms of these two patients showed an ill-defined hyperechoic lesion in the intermediate portion of the deltoid muscle but subsequent shoulder MRI was negative for DC. Shoulder pain in these two patients resolved within 3 weeks and 1 month, respectively, and follow-up sonography showed resumption of a normal deltoid configuration. Transient focal deltoid inflammation or myositis was diagnosed and these two cases were therefore considered as false-positive on sonography.
For 20 shoulders in 18 patients, both sonography and MRI showed positive features of DC with involvement of the intermediate portion of the deltoid muscles and sparing of the anterior portion. Sonography and MRI revealed involvement of the posterior deltoid in 16 shoulders and 14 shoulders, respectively. The results of comparison of sonography and MRI assessment of the lesion extent, transverse morphologic appearance, and maximal lesion diameter are summarized in Table 1. Confident MRI diagnosis of DC could be established by coronal and sagittal oblique delineation of the whole length of the hypointense cords, which aligned along the typical course of the deltoid. In addition, none of our patients showed any metallic foreign bodies on shoulder radiographs, which allowed exclusion of metallic artifacts that might also appear hypointense on MRI. Sonography showed good agreement (kappa = 0.796, p < 0.001) with MRI in the assessment of the longitudinal extent of the DC with involvement of whole length of the deltoid in 12 shoulders (lesion score = 3), upper and middle third in five (lesion score = 2), and middle third in one (lesion score = 1). In the remaining two shoulders, sonography revealed upper two-thirds involvement while MRI showed the DC involved the whole length of the deltoid.
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The sonography morphologic appearances on transverse scans of the DC lesions could be categorized into three patterns. Sonographic pattern I (n = 9) denoted a hyperechoic lesion with multiple less than 8-mm intralesional hypoechoic spots (Fig. 2A). Sonographic pattern II (n = 7) denoted a lesion with heterogeneous echotexture predominantly occupied by one to several 8- to 15-mm hypoechoic areas (Fig. 3A). Sonographic pattern III (n =4) denoted a calcified nodule with size greater than 15-mm (Fig. 4A). In agreement with the sonograms, axial MR images also showed three lesion patterns. MRI pattern I (n = 10) denoted multiple less than 8-mm intradeltoid hypointense spots (Fig. 2B). MRI pattern II (n = 6) denoted a cluster of several 8- to 15-mm hypointense areas (Fig. 3B). MRI pattern III (n = 4) denoted a hypointense nodule with size greater than 15 mm (Fig. 4B). The three transverse sonography lesion morphologic patterns showed excellent agreement with three MR lesion patterns (kappa = 0.921, p < 0.001). However, the maximal lesion diameters appeared significantly larger on sonography than on MRI (mean, 2.8 ± 0.6 cm vs 2.0 ± 0.8 cm, p < 0.001, Wilcoxon's signed rank test), which was attributable to a hyperechoic rim of variable thickness on sonographic patterns I and II lesions. In addition to DC, coexistent supraspinatus tendinopathies also were identified on both sonography and MRI in 10 shoulders (complete tear in six, partial tear in three, and supraspinatus tendinitis in one).
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Nine of 20 shoulders were treated surgically. Four of these shoulders received concomitant repair of complete tear of the supraspinatus tendon and distal release of the DC. A fifth shoulder first was treated by repair of the supraspinatus tendon tear, and distal release of the DC was performed 3 months later due to persistent shoulder pain and limitation of motion. The remaining four shoulders without coexistent rotator cuff lesion were treated with distal release of the DC. Partial resection of the deltoid fibrous cords also was performed in four shoulders (one with sonographic pattern I, two with sonographic pattern II, and one with sonographic pattern III). Among these nine shoulders, marked clinical improvement was noted in seven while mild painful sensation during adduction of the glenohumeral joint was still noted in two. Histopathologic examinations (Fig. 3C) showed a dense fibrous portion with thickened collagen in the lesions that corresponded to the hypoechoic areas on sonograms and hypointense areas on MRI. On the other hand, the tissues at the fibromuscular junctional regions were composed of prominent capillaries and myofibroblasts while the fibrous stroma was less compact and these histopathologic findings correlated with the hyperechoic changes associated with DC, especially at the periphery of DC lesions. Prominent dystrophic calcification in the dense sclerotic fibrous stroma was noted in the specimen with sonographic pattern III.
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Discussion
Intramuscular injection can induce local hemorrhage, ischemia, necrosis, and chemical myositis [3–5, 7, 8]. Repeated intramuscular injections, however, can lead to fibrosis of the injection sites, coalition of the adjoining perimysial and epimysial tissues, and eventually can evolve into contracture status of the muscles or injection myopathy [3, 7, 8]. In our country, intramuscular injection is a common practice in local clinics in patients with fever, pain, or infection. The gluteal, deltoid, and quadriceps muscles are the most common sites for these injections [1, 7–11] and among the three deltoid portions, the intermediate portion is the preferable site for intramuscular injection. However, the intermediate portion with short muscle fibers is most susceptible because even fibrosis of only a few short muscles easily can lead to coalition of the interspersed tendons and subsequent development of DC [2, 6, 7]. In our series, all patients had histories of repetitive injections in the deltoid muscles and DC predominantly affects the intermediate portion of the deltoid.
Although typical DC may present with characteristic features such as palpable fibrous cords within the deltoid and winged scapula, this uncommon entity occasionally may be overlooked due to diversity of clinical presentations [3–5]. Among our patients, approximately two thirds manifested pain and a restricted range of shoulder motion that led to initial clinical suspicion of shoulder impingement. Subacromial impingement associated with DC has been described [9, 12]. In this study, DC was also associated with rotator cuff abnormalities in 10 of 20 shoulders.
The radiographic features of DC include soft-tissue calcifications, winging of the scapula, lateral down-sloping of the acromial process, and a superior acromial enthesophyte [1, 13]. Although these indirect findings are suggestive of DC, a specific diagnosis relies on direct visualization of the fibrotic cords. MRI can offer a confident diagnosis of DC by multiplanar delineation of the hypointense fibrotic cords from the origins (clavicle, acromion, and scapular spine) to the common insertion at the humeral tuberosity [1, 2]. The location and the extent of the lesions, which are important information for surgical planning, also can be well delineated, especially on gradient-echo images, with good contrast between the hypointense cords and hyperintense soft tissues [1, 2]. Nevertheless, the routine application of MRI for screening of DC in patients with nonspecific shoulder pain is of doubtful practicality.
Sonography is a useful tool for screening fibrotic soft-tissue lesions due to its relatively low cost, lack of radiation exposure, and the proximity of the lesion to the skin [14–16]. However, the diagnostic value of sonography for DC has not been well established. The results of our study indicate that sonography is feasible for the detection of clinically overlooked DC during routine shoulder examination. Our study showed that detailed transverse sonographic scanning of the three portions of the deltoid from the origins to humeral tuberosity facilitated localization of the fibrotic cords and longitudinal scanning showed good agreement with MRI in assessing the longitudinal extent of the lesions (kappa = 0.796, p < 0.001).
Apart from the longitudinal extent of DC, our study also showed that three morphologic patterns of the fibrotic cords could be demonstrated on transverse sonographic scan and that these patterns were well correlated with similar findings on MRI (kappa = 0.921, p < 0.001). Pattern I denoted multiple hypoechoic or hypointense small-caliber fibrotic cords (diameter < 8 mm) and was identifiable on sonograms and MRI. This picture plausibly reflects the initial stage of small focal fibrotic foci formation within the deltoid after intramuscular injections. As the number of injections increases and/or as the lesion evolves over time, these small-caliber cords might coalesce into several 8- to 15-mm hypoechoic or hypointense areas resulting in pattern II or the lesions might develop into calcified fibrotic masses leading to pattern III. It is not surprising that the dense sclerotic fibrous tissues in DC lesions, which are composed of thickened collagen fibers and few cells, appear hypoechoic on sonograms and hypointense on MRI [1, 2, 14–21].
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DC can lead to decreased muscle strength in flexion, extension, and limited adduction of the shoulder. Prolonged anterosuperior translation of humeral head due to DC may lead to incongruence and osteoarthritic changes of the glenohumeral joint [3–5, 7–9, 12, 1]. Distal release and partial resection of the fibrotic masses, if necessary, result in excellent recovery [4, 5, 9–11]. Surprisingly good function and strength of the shoulder could be maintained even after resection of the affected deltoid muscle, possibly due to hypertrophy of the remaining muscles [9, 22]. However, DC may mimic or even coexist with shoulder impingement or rotator cuff abnormalities [1, 9, 12]. Our study showed that sonography is useful for detecting clinically overlooked DC and for comprehensive surgical planning, especially when rotator cuff repair and distal release of DC can be performed simultaneously [9].
On the other hand, our study harbored several limitations. First, there was selection bias as sonography was applied as the gatekeeper for subjects to enter the study. Second, the data with regard to injection type, depth, and frequency could not be documented accurately. Third, despite MRI being useful for evaluating DC [1, 2] and that we used it as a reference standard, to our knowledge, no randomized large-series study regarding the accuracy of MRI in the diagnosis of DC has been reported. Fourth, among nine of 20 shoulders that were surgically treated with distal release, only four cases underwent partial fibrous cord resection with specimens available for histopathologic correlation with imaging findings.
In summary, our results show that sonography is helpful for revealing this uncommon but easily overlooked entity, especially in patients presenting with nonspecific shoulder pain and limited range of motion, and with good correlation with MRI.
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