Citation, DOI, disclosures and article data
Citation:
Mous A, Weerakkody Y, Foster T, et al. Coracoclavicular ligament injury. Reference article, Radiopaedia.org (Accessed on 30 Mar 2025) https://doi.org/10.53347/rID-1133
Coracoclavicular (CC) ligament injury is common with shoulder trauma. It is considered part of the spectrum of acromioclavicular joint injuries 2 and is not often an isolated injury. It is also often injured with clavicular fractures.
This injury is easy to miss, especially with the presence of any obvious associated injury (sometimes called the "satisfaction of search").
Plain radiograph
- increase by 50% of the coracoclavicular distance, which is normally 11-13 mm, is indicative of CC ligament disruption and AC joint dislocation 3
MRI
- coronal oblique plane parallel to the clavicle has been shown to be most effective 3:
-
T1: best demonstrates normal anatomy
-
T2 or PD FS: best demonstrates fluid/blood around an injured CC ligament
Treatment and prognosis
Various treatment options exist inclusive of
ADVERTISEMENT: Supporters see fewer/no ads
-
1. Yoo YS, Seo YJ, Noh KC et-al. Arthroscopically assisted anatomical coracoclavicular ligament reconstruction using tendon graft. Int Orthop. 2011;35 (7): 1025-30. doi:10.1007/s00264-010-1124-3 - Free text at pubmed - Pubmed citation
-
2. Nicholson DA, Lang I, Hughes P et-al. ABC of emergency radiology. The shoulder. BMJ. 1994;307 (6912): 1129-34. Free text at pubmed - Pubmed citation
-
3. Alyas F, Curtis M, Speed C et-al. MR imaging appearances of acromioclavicular joint dislocation. Radiographics. 2008;28 (2): 463-79. doi:10.1148/rg.282075714 - Pubmed citation
-
4. Wylie JD, Johnson JD, DiVenere J, Mazzocca AD. Shoulder Acromioclavicular and Coracoclavicular Ligament Injuries: Common Problems and Solutions. (2018) Clinics in sports medicine. 37 (2): 197-207. doi:10.1016/j.csm.2017.12.002 - Pubmed
-
5. Huang TW, Hsieh PH, Huang KC, Huang KC. Suspension suture augmentation for repair of coracoclavicular ligament disruptions. (2009) Clinical orthopaedics and related research. 467 (8): 2142-8. doi:10.1007/s11999-008-0684-7 - Pubmed
Promoted articles (advertising)
Unable to process the form. Check for errors and try again.