Depressive and Anxiety Disorders Increase Risk for Recurrent Anterior Shoulder Pain Following Arthroscopic Suprapectoral Biceps Tenodesis.

Purpose: To evaluate factors associated with postoperative anterior shoulder pain following arthroscopic suprapectoral biceps tenodesis (ABT) and to determine the clinical impact of postoperative anterior shoulder pain. Methods: A retrospective study of patients that underwent ABT between 2016 and 2020 was conducted. Groups were categorized by the presence (ASP+) or absence (ASP-) of postoperative anterior shoulder pain. Patient-reported outcomes (American Shoulder and Elbow score [ASES], visual analog scale [VAS] for pain, subjective shoulder value [SSV]), strength, range of motion, and complication rates were analyzed. Differences between continuous and categorical variables were tested with two-sample t-tests and chi-squared or Fisher's exact tests, respectively. Variables collected at different postoperative timepoints were analyzed using mixed models with post hoc comparisons when significant interactions were detected. Results: A total of 461 (47 ASP+, 414 ASP-) patients were included. A statistically significant lower mean age was observed in the ASP+ group (P < .001). A statistically significant higher prevalence of major depressive disorder (MDD) (P = .03) or any anxiety disorder (P = .002) was observed in the ASP+ group. Prescription medication with psychotropic medications (P = .01) was significantly more prevalent in the ASP+ group. No significant differences were observed in the proportion of individuals reaching the minimal clinical important difference (MCID) for ASES, VAS, or SSV between groups. Conclusions: A pre-existing diagnosis of major depressive disorder or any anxiety disorder, as well as the use of psychotropic medications was associated with postoperative anterior shoulder pain following ABT. Other factors associated with anterior shoulder pain included younger age, participation in physical therapy before surgery, and lower rate of concomitant rotator cuff repair or subacromial decompression. Although the proportion of individuals reaching MCID did not differ between groups, the presence of anterior shoulder pain after ABT resulted in prolonged recovery, inferior PROs, and a higher incidence of repeat surgical procedures. The decision to perform ABT in patients diagnosed with MDD or anxiety should be carefully considered, given the correlation to postoperative anterior shoulder pain and inferior outcomes. Level of Evidence: Level III, retrospective case-control study.

Role of Canonical Wnt/ß-Catenin Pathway in Regulating Chondrocytic Hypertrophy in Mesenchymal Stem Cell-Based Cartilage Tissue Engineering.

In the past 3 decades, the cartilage repair potential of mesenchymal stromal cells, or mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs), has been widely examined in animal studies. Unfortunately, the phenotype and physical properties of MSC-derived cartilage tissue are not comparable to native hyaline cartilage. In particular, chondrocytic hypertrophy, a phenotype that is not observed in healthy hyaline cartilage, is concomitant with MSC chondrogenesis. Given that hypertrophic chondrocytes potentially undergo apoptosis or convert into osteoblasts, this undesired phenotype needs to be prevented or minimized before MSCs can be used to repair cartilage injuries in the clinic. In this review, we first provide an overview of chondrocytic hypertrophy and briefly summarize current methods for suppressing hypertrophy in MSC-derived cartilage. We then highlight recent progress on modulating the canonical Wnt/ß-catenin pathway for inhibiting hypertrophy. Specially, we discuss the potential crosstalk between Wnt/ß-catenin with other pathways in regulating hypertrophy. Lastly, we explore future perspectives to further understand the role of Wnt/ß-catenin in chondrocytic hypertrophy.