The Diagnostic Value of the Ulnocarpal Stress Test for Differentiating the Symptomatic Triangular Fibrocartilage Complex Tear from the Incidental Tear

Abstract

Purpose: The purpose of this study was to determine the diagnostic value of the ulnocarpal stress test (UCST) for differentiating the symptomatic triangular fibrocartilage complex (TFCC) tear from the incidental tear.Methods: From January 2013 to May 2020, a study was performed on 109 patients who underwent wrist arthroscopy and showed TFCC tear. Patients who had ulnar-sided wrist pain along with TFCC tear, and showed postoperative symptom improvement, and those with other lesions excluded were defined as symptomatic tear (experimental group) and the rest were defined as asymptomatic tear (control group). Diagnostic values of the UCST for differentiating the symptomatic TFCC tear from the incidental tear were calculated.Results: The UCST showed a sensitivity of 54%, a specificity of 95%, a positive predictive value of 98%, a negative predictive value of 31%, a positive likelihood ratio of 10.34, a negative likelihood ratio of 0.48, and an overall diagnostic accuracy of 61%. Conclusion: The UCST showed limited diagnostic value for symptomatic TFCC tear. Therefore, this test needs to be regarded as a part of diagnostic process and their results should be interpreted in the context of other relevant clinical information before reaching the diagnosis of symptomatic TFCC tear.