The significance of the meniscal flounce sign in canine stifle arthroscopy.

Abstract

OBJECTIVE: To determine the diagnostic significance of the meniscal flounce sign in association with meniscal tears. STUDY DESIGN: Prospective cohort study. SAMPLE POPULATION: One hundred and thirty stifles in 120 client-owned dogs that underwent stifle arthroscopy. METHODS: Identification of a positive or negative meniscal flounce sign was recorded with the presence or absence of meniscal pathology. Sensitivity, specificity, positive and negative predictive values, and diagnostic accuracy were calculated. RESULTS: Eighty-nine stifles (68.5%) were noted to have a positive meniscal flounce sign. Of these stifles, four were noted to have a meniscal tear, and they were all radial tears. A total of 41 stifles (31.5%) had a negative meniscal flounce. Of these stifles, 38 had a meniscal tear. The sensitivity, specificity, positive and negative predictive values, and diagnostic accuracy of the meniscal flounce sign for indicating an intact or torn meniscus were 96.6%, 90.5%, 95.5%, 92.7%, and 94.6%, respectively. CONCLUSION: A positive meniscal flounce sign was associated with a normal meniscus and the absence of the flounce sign was associated with a meniscal tear. CLINICAL SIGNIFICANCE: Identification of the meniscal flounce sign during stifle arthroscopy is a strong indicator of a normal medial meniscus. The absence of the sign strongly indicates the presence of meniscal pathology.