Background: Massive rotator cuff tears have a high incidence of postoperative retear that can reach 90%. It is still unclear which intervention may reduce the incidence of retear and improve the functional and clinical outcomes.
Purpose/hypothesis: The purpose of this study was to investigate the clinical and structural outcomes at 2 years after repair of reparable massive rotator cuff tears with and without the use of partial superior capsular reconstruction (pSCR), using the autologous long head of the biceps tendon (LHBT) as a graft. It was hypothesized that augmentation with a pSCR would decrease retear rates.
Study design: Cohort study; Level of evidence, 3.
Methods: The authors compared arthroscopic repair of massive posterosuperior rotator cuff tears with and without augmentation using the LHBT for pSCR between 2015 and 2017. After applying the selection criteria, 106 patients were included in the study and distributed into 2 groups of 50 and 56 patients. Patients in the first group (50 patients) underwent arthroscopic repair without use of the LHBT (AR group), and patients in the second group (56 patients) underwent arthroscopic repair with use of the LHBT for pSCR (AR-LHBT group). The structural outcome was evaluated by ultrasound at 2 years of follow-up. Function and pain were evaluated preoperatively and at the 2-year follow-up using the American Shoulder and Elbow Surgeons (ASES) score and visual analog scale (VAS). Pre- and postoperative active range of motion, including forward elevation, external rotation, and abduction, were also documented.
Results: No significant differences were found between groups regarding the baseline characteristics. After 24 months, both groups showed significant improvement from preoperative ASES scores, VAS score, and active range of motion (P < .01 for all). Patients in the AR-LHBT group showed significant improvements in postoperative functional and pain scores compared with the AR group in all measurements at the 2-year follow-up (ASES score: 77.23 ± 7.45 vs 71.04 ± 9.28, P < .01; VAS score: 1.64 ± 1.03 vs 2.12 ± 1.06, P < .01). Final range of motion was significantly increased for the AR-LHBT group for forward elevation (155 [interquartile range {IQR}, 150-160] vs 150 [IQR, 140-170]; P < .01) and abduction (150 [IQR, 140-157.5] vs 120 [IQR, 100-140]; P < .01), but external rotation was significantly greater for the AR group (54.43 ± 10.55 vs 59.5 ± 10.55; P < .01). Postoperative ultrasonography at the 2-year follow-up revealed a higher retear rate in the AR group than in the AR-LHBT group (46% vs 14%; P < .01).
Conclusion: Use of the LHBT for pSCR to augment massive rotator cuff tears resulted in markedly lower retear rates and modestly improved pain and function outcomes compared with repair alone.
Keywords: biologic augmentation; long head of the biceps tendon; massive rotator cuff tear; rotator cuff repair; shoulder arthroscopy; superior capsular reconstruction.