Comparison of efficacy of supraspinatus tendon tears diagnostic tests: a prospective study on the "full-can," the "empty-can," and the "Whipple" tests.

Compared with the empty-can test and the full-can test, the Whipple test was less specific, while its sensitivity was equal to that of the empty-can test and higher than that for the full-can test. Because of its low specificity, the Whipple test has a high risk of false-positive results in comparison with the other tests.