the large, flat, triangular bone that overlies the posterior thoracic wall is called the:

In these cases, US is able to redirect the diagnosis if a complete examination of the shoulder area is performed instead of a simple rotator cuff assessment. These conditions can mimic rotator cuff tears clinically and most commonly involve the glenohumeral and acromioclavicular joints and the soft-tissue structures around the shoulder, including the joint recesses, the bone and articular cartilage, the subacromial subdeltoid bursa, the labrum, the muscles and the suprascapular and axillary nerves. In addition to the rotator cuff, interest is also growing in the US evaluation of a variety of abnormalities of articular and para-articular structures located in and around the shoulder area (Martinoli et al. With appropriate equipment and skilled hands, this technique provides assessment of rotator cuff pathology with high sensitivity and specificity in the diagnosis of both partial and full-thickness tears with some specific advantages over MR imaging, such as higher resolution capabilities and the ability to examine tissues in both static and dynamic states and with the patient in different positions. Many papers dealing with the US scanning technique of the rotator cuff tendons have already been published in the radiological, rheumatologic and orthopaedic literature and US is now widely recognized as an accurate means to evaluate rotator cuff disease (Ptasznik 2001 Bouffard et al. The shoulder is one of the most common applications of musculoskeletal US due to the high incidence of rotator cuff disorders related to increasing aging and sporting activities.

The large, flat, triangular bone that overlies the posterior thoracic wall is called the: