Long-term effectiveness of arthroscopic partial repair for massive irreparable rotator cuff tears / 中国修复重建外科杂志

OBJECTIVE@#To explore the long-term effectiveness of arthroscopic partial repair in treatment of massive irreparable rotator cuff tears from both the radiological and clinical perspectives.@*METHODS@#A retrospective analysis was conducted on the clinical data of 24 patients (25 sides) with massive irreparable rotator cuff tears who met the inclusion criteria between May 2006 and September 2014. Among them, there were 17 males (18 sides) and 7 females (7 sides) with an age range of 43-67 years (mean, 55.0 years). There were 23 cases of unilateral injury and 1 case of bilateral injuries. All patients were treated with the arthroscopic partial repair. The active range of motion of forward elevation and abduction, external rotation, and internal rotation, as well as the muscle strength for forward flexion and external rotation, were recorded before operation, at the first postoperative follow-up, and at last follow-up. The American Association of Shoulder and Elbow Surgeons (ASES) score, the University of California at Los Angeles (UCLA) shoulder scoring, and Constant score were used to evaluate shoulder joint function. And the visual analogue scale (VAS) score was used to evaluate shoulder joint pain. MRI examination was performed. The signal-to-noise quotient (SNQ) was measured above the anchor point near the footprint area (m area) and above the glenoid (g area) in the oblique coronal T2 fat suppression sequence. The atrophy of the supraspinatus muscle was evaluated using the tangent sign. The global fatty degeneration index (GFDI) was measured to assess fat infiltration in the supraspinatus muscle, infraspinatus muscle, teres minor muscle, upper and lower parts of the subscapularis muscle. The mean GFDI (GFDI-5) of 5 muscles was calculated.@*RESULTS@#The incisions healed by first intention. All patients were followed up with the first follow-up time of 1.0-1.7 years (mean, 1.3 years) and the last follow-up time of 7-11 years (mean, 8.4 years). At last follow-up, the range of motion and muscle strength of forward elevation and abduction, ASES score, Constant score, UCLA score, and VAS score of the patients significantly improved when compared with those before operation ( P<0.05). Compared with the first follow-up, except for a significant increase in ASES score ( P<0.05), there was no significant difference in the other indicators ( P>0.05). Compared with those before operation, the degree of supraspinatus muscle infiltration worsened at last follow-up ( P<0.05), GFDI-5 increased significantly ( P<0.05), and there was significant difference in the tangent sign ( P<0.05); while there was no significant difference in the infiltration degree of infraspinatus muscle, teres minor muscle, and subscapularis muscle, upper and lower parts of the subscapularis muscle ( P>0.05). Compared with the first follow-up, the SNQm and SNQg decreased significantly at last follow-up ( P<0.05). At the first and last follow-up, there was no correlation between the SNQm and SNQg and the ASES score, Constant score, UCLA score, and VAS score of the shoulder ( P>0.05).@*CONCLUSION@#Arthroscopic partial repair is effective in treating massive irreparable rotator cuff tear and significantly improves long-term shoulder joint function. For patients with severe preoperative fat infiltration involving a large number of tendons and poor quality of repairable tendons, it is suggested to consider other treatment methods.

Traumatic Posterior Rotator Cuff Tear in the Pre-existing Chronic Supraspinatus Tendon Tear / 대한스포츠의학회지

PURPOSE: This study aimed to evaluate the diagnostic characteristics and clinical results after surgical repair of traumatic superimposed posterior rotator cuff tear in the setting of preexisting retracted supraspinatus tendon tear.METHODS: A total of 20 patients (mean age, 62.1 years) were included and all patients had significant traumatic events mean 3.7 weeks prior to the surgery. Preoperative acromiohumeral distance (AHD, mean 3.2 mm) and arthritis change were analyzed on plain radiograph and magnetic resonance imaging was evaluated for the nature and extent of torn tendon, and fatty degeneration (FD) of all cuff muscles to validate if the tears were traumatic or chronic.RESULTS: Complete repairs were achieved in 15 patients and partial repair including posterior cuff in five. Functional and radiographic results were statistically evaluated and repair integrities were assessed with ultrasound at average 17.3 months. Overall functional outcome scores were significantly improved and 17 patients (85%) were satisfied with their symptoms. AHD was significantly recovered (mean, 6.7 mm), but two patients showed progression of arthritic change. Retears after the complete repair were three patients (20%), who showed poor outcome, with advanced preoperative FD of posterior cuff muscles. Five patients with partial repair of posterior cuff revealed improved functional score with no sign of retear of posterior cuff on ultrasound.CONCLUSION: Early recognition of traumatic superimposed posterior cuff tears and surgical repair can reliably restore shoulder function, and partial repair of posterior cuff also can be expected favorable outcomes in supraspinatus tear with advanced FD.

Clinical Result of Arthroscopic Partial Repairs in Massive Rotator Cuff Tears

PURPOSE: With the better understanding of cuff function, partial repair or "force couple repair" for treating massive irreparable rotator cuff tear has gained some popularity. However, there were few reports on the results of partial repair. The purpose of this study was to report the clinical outcome of massive irreparable rotator cuff tears who received arthroscopic force-couple repair or partial repair. MATERIALS AND METHODS: From June 2005 to Feb 2008, arthroscopic partial repairs were performed for 16 irreparable rotator cuff tears among the 101 large to massive rotator cuff tears that were operated on. Clinical and radiographic evaluation were done at the final follow-up RESULTS: There were 7 men and 9 women with a mean age of 66.6 years. The mean follow-up period was 27.3 month (range: 15-46). The pain VAS improved from 4.4 (+/-2.50) to 2.1 (+/-2.26) and the functional VAS improved from 46.9 (+/-16.64) to 70.0 (+/-22.80). The ASES score improved from 39.0 (+/-10.80) to 80.3 (+/-16.78) and the KSS score was 81.9 (+/-16.74) at the final follow-up. The acromio-humeral distance was 6.6 cm (+/-1.74) preoperatively and 6.2 cm (+/-1.69) postoperatively without significant change (p=0.3874). The degenerative changes had no statistically progressed (p=0.2663). CONCLUSION: Partial repair for massive rotator cuff injury patients showed improvement in the clinical score without progression of arthritic change at a mean of 2.3 years follow-up.

Surgical Treatment for Massive Rotator Cuff Tears / 대한정형외과학회잡지

PURPOSE: To compare the results in patients with a complete repair, partial repair, and subacromial decompression and debridement of a massive rotator cuff tear. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Twenty-eight cases, who underwent surgery for massive rotator cuff tears with a minimum follow-up of 2 years, were reviewed. Group A with a complete repair comprised of 16 cases, group B with partial repair comprised of 5, and group C with only debridement comprised of 7. The results were assessed using the UCLA shoulder rating scale. RESULTS: The pain scores improved from 2.4 preoperatively to 8.5 points postoperatively in group A, 2.2 to 8.2 in group B, and 2.4 to 8 in group C. The active forward flexion improved from 86degrees to 149degrees in group A, 82degrees to 140degrees in group B, and 91degrees to 121degrees in group C. Overall, 13 cases (81%) from group A, 4 cases (80%) from group B, and 4 cases (57%) from group C had satisfactory results. CONCLUSION: The patients, who failed to achieve a repair, and received debridement or subacromial decompression instead demonstrated pain relief with poor restoration of their function. However, there was a favorable outcome in the patients with a partial repair because the complete repair could not be done. In conclusion, where possible, it is better to repair massive rotator cuff tears surgically.