Rotator cuff tear in a 13-year-old baseball player: a case report.

Rotator cuff injuries are among the most common shoulder injuries seen in athletes. They occur mostly in baseball players and other athletes who frequently use the arm in overhead or throwing positions. Although juvenile and adolescent baseball players are also prone to shoulder injuries, tears of the rotator cuff are extremely uncommon in this age group. A review of the orthopaedic and sports medicine literature found no reports specific to rotator cuff injuries in adolescents. In addition, among the numerous studies focusing on treatment of rotator cuff injuries in young athletes, the youngest patient included in any report was 18 years old. We describe the repair of a high-grade partial-thickness tear of the supraspinatus tendon that occurred in a 13-year-old baseball pitcher.