Functional outcomes after physiotherapy program in patients with massive and irreparable rotator cuff tear.

OBJECTIVE: To evaluate the short term and 1-year follow-up functional effects of a physiotherapy programme in patients over 60 years of age with massive and irreparable Rotator Cuff (RC) tear. METHODS: A total of 96 patients with massive and irreparable RC tear were prospectively recruited. All patients were treated with a 12-week physiotherapy programme. Three evaluations were performed, at the beginning, at the end of the treatment and at one year of follow-up. The Constant-Murley questionnaire was used to assess shoulder function, the DASH questionnaire for upper limb function, and the Visual Analogue Scale (VAS) for pain intensity. RESULTS: At the end of the treatment, all the variables showed a clinically and statistically significant difference (p<.05). At one year of follow-up, the Constant-Murley showed an increase of 26.5 points (Cohen's d=1.7; 95% CI: 23.5-29.5; p<.001), DASH showed a decrease of 31.4 points (Cohen's d=2.2; 95% CI: 28.5-34.3; p<.001), and the VAS showed a decrease of 3.9cm (Cohen's d=3.6; 95% CI: 3.6-4.1; p<.001). CONCLUSION: In the short term and 1-year follow-up, a physiotherapy programme showed clinically and statistically significant results in all functional variables in patients older than 60 years with massive and irreparable RC tear.