Dynamic ultrasonography of capsulo-ligamentous knee joint traumas.

Ultrasonography was performed on 10 patients with acute posttraumatic conditions of the knee in which X-ray films could exclude the presence of fractures. In 2 of 10 cases, the sonographic picture was normal; in the remaining 8 patients, ultrasonography disclosed capsulo-ligamentous lesions of different degrees of severity that were confirmed by surgery in 5 of 8 cases. The main sonographic signs of articular traumas were abnormal widening of the joint space (7 cases), intra-articular hemorrhage (8 cases), rupture of the medial collateral ligament (4 cases), or irregularity of its structure (3 cases). Ultrasonography is proposed as an effective and simple first-line method for the study of knee joint traumas. It can be performed in all cases presenting with painful joint swelling without radiographical evidence of fractures.