Usefulness of Multiphase Scaffolds for Improving Tendon to Bone Healing for Rotator Cuff Tears in Shoulder

ABSTRACT

Rotator cuff tear is often cited as a reason for shoulder pain and dysfunction in patients ＞ 40 years of age. Surgical repair of rotator cuff tear is one of the most commonly performed orthopedic surgical procedures. Until now, the success rate of surgical repair for rotator cuff tear has not been satisfactory. Many factors influence the process of rotator cuff repair such as the presence of tendinosis and fatty infiltration, but the main factor is the difficulty in achieving healing at the tendon to bone interface. There is a clinical need for bioengineering approaches to promote regeneration of the native enthesis and reduce the poor outcomes after surgical repair. Toward this end, the design and fabrication of multiphasic or hierarchically structured scaffolds have received great attention. This manuscript deals with information on the tendon to bone interface and tries to find out why a multiphasic scaffold is necessary to reproduce it and considerations that need to be taken into to make an ideal scaffold.