Rotator Cuff Repair

The prevalence of rotator cuff injury is probably as high as 30% in people over 45 with shoulder pain. In general, surgical repair results are very good, but the success rate seems to fall of the longer surgery is postponed. The Shoulder Service at Mount Sinai , New York City, investigated this, and reported their findings in the American Journal of Sports Medicine.

38 patients with an average age of 62 were evaluated preoperatively and 1 year postoperatively with clinical exams and MRI scans. The re-tear rate – which was 39% at 1 year - and progression of muscle degeneration were assessed. Muscle quality was key to the success rate. Preoperative degrees of atrophy and fatty infiltration of the infraspinatus and supraspinatus muscles were linked to the risk of re-injury. The degree of atrophy and fatty infiltration did not improve over time – it was either stable or got worse. The principal investigator refers to a ’point of no return’, when the muscles undergo irreversible change.

So if you have a painful shoulder, don’t delay in having it looked at, and if surgery is suggested, act sooner rather than later.