The Use of Ultrasound in Diagnosing Morton's Neuroma and Histological Correlation

Abstract

This was a retrospective study examining 60 surgically excised Morton's neuromas from 53 patients over a period of three years at Southend University Hospital, Essex. The initial diagnosis of Morton's neuroma was based on history and examination findings. In only one-third of cases was the neuroma palpable. However, many patients had difficulty localizing the pain and had atypical presentation. We attempted to assess the reliability of ultrasound in diagnosing Morton's neuroma in the 60 histologically confirmed cases. Our second objective was to assess whether size estimate of a neuroma seen on ultrasound correlated with subsequent real specimen measurement. In our study, preoperative ultrasound reliably diagnosed Morton's neuroma in 97% of the cases. In contrast, there was poor correlation in real specimen size measurements when compared with ultrasound reports.