BACKGROUND The natural history of small, symptomatic rotator cuff tears is currently unclear. The purpose of the present study was to assess the clinical and structural outcomes for a consecutive series of patients with symptomatic, isolated full-thickness supraspinatus tears who had been offered rotator cuff repair but declined operative treatment. METHODS In the study period, twenty-four pa...

BACKGROUND A preexisting rotator cuff tear may affect the draft status and career performance of National Football League (NFL) players. HYPOTHESIS Preexisting rotator cuff tears decrease a player's draft status, performance, and longevity in the NFL. STUDY DESIGN Retrospective cohort study. LEVEL OF EVIDENCE Level 3. METHODS Medical reports of prospective NFL players during the NFL Sco...

Rotator cuff (RTC) disease is a particularly prevalent cause of shoulder pain and weakness presenting to primary care physicians, internists, rheumatologists, and orthopedists. An understanding of the anatomy of the RTC tendons and the underlying pathogenesis aids in the diagnosis, which is based largely on history and specific physical examination tests. Imaging may further define the patholog...

CONTEXT Little is known about pitching performance or lack of it among Major League Baseball (MLB) pitchers who undergo operative treatment of rotator cuff tears. OBJECTIVE To assess pitching performance outcomes in MLB players who needed operative treatment of rotator cuff tears and to compare performance in these athletes with that in a control group of MLB players. DESIGN Case-control st...

The aim of this review was to present an over view of degenerative rotator cuff tears and a suggested management protocol based upon current evidence. Degenerative rotator cuff tears are common and are a major cause of pain and shoulder dysfunction. The management of these tears is controversial, as to whether they should be managed non-operatively or operatively. In addition when operative int...

Introduction Rotator cuff tears are a common cause of pain and disability. 2 With modern advances in arthroscopy and arthroscopic techniques, most rotator cuff tears can now be repaired arthroscopically, with several authors reporting successful results. However, the optimal management of massive rotator cuff tears is controversial and evolving. In general, a massive rotator cuff tear (MRCT) is...

Study Design Case-control study. Purpose The aim of the present study was to identify physical findings useful for differentiating between cervical spondylotic amyotrophy (CSA) and rotator cuff tears to prevent the misdiagnosis of CSA as a rotator cuff tear. Overview of Literature CSA and rotator cuff tears are often confused among patients presenting with difficulty in shoulder elevation. ...

Background and purpose - There is a need to understand the reasons why a high proportion of rotator cuff repairs fail to heal. Using data from a large randomized clinical trial, we evaluated age and tear size as risk factors for failure of rotator cuff repair. Patients and methods - Between 2007 and 2014, 65 surgeons from 47 hospitals in the National Health Service (NHS) recruited 447 patients ...

BACKGROUND Partial thickness supraspinatus tears and tendonosis can be managed either nonoperatively or by various arthroscopic techniques. New biologic treatment approaches are currently being investigated. MRI is commonly used for objective imaging outcome evaluation but there is a lack of reliability studies. We propose a novel MRI classification of partial supraspinatus tears and tendonosis...

PURPOSE To demonstrate the value of 3.0T MR imaging for the detection of rotator cuff tendon tears and surgical planning by correlating imaging findings to surgical findings. Materials and methods. Prospective follow-up of patients who underwent 3.0T MR imaging of the shoulder in our department between November 2005 and June 2007. Surgical findings were correlated to imaging findings for 48 pat...