Knotted or knotless double-row rotator cuff repair retear rates: a systematic review and meta-analysis.

Background: Arthroscopic rotator cuff tear repair techniques used to rely on knot-tying double row techniques, but the advent of knotless transosseous equivalent procedures introduced a new variable to the debate. The purpose of this study is to determine which technique is associated with lower retear rates. For its' biomechanical advantages, the authors' hypothesis is that knotless techniques would have lower retear rates. Methods: A systematic literature search was performed via PubMed and Google Scholar by two independent reviewers following PRISMA guidelines. Papers reporting retear rates after rotator cuff arthroscopic repair using knotted double-row or knotless transosseous equivalent techniques, evaluated by magnetic resonance imaging at least 6 months after surgery, were retrieved. Studies that do not differentiate between techniques and nonclinical reports were excluded. Eligible data was analyzed with Review Manager 5.4.1 using Mantel-Haenszel statistics with a fixed effect model. Results: The authors' initial literature search retrieved 511 reports. After the selection process, 24 articles were available for this review, and 9 were eligible for meta-analysis. A comparison of 1888 subjects from noncomparative reports and a meta-analysis of reports in which both techniques were studied could not show a statistically significant difference in technique retear rates. Discussion and conclusion: The current report revealed no significant difference in retear rates between the two arthroscopic repair techniques. Studies' quality was a limitation. Only two reported level 1 evidence. This review could not control variables such as cuff tear size, tissue quality, or individual comorbidities. Larger and longer follow-up studies could be helpful to further investigate this topic.

Tendon transfers for massive rotator cuff tears.

Massive rotator cuff tears (MRCTs) present a particular challenge due to high rates of retear that can range from 18 to 94%, failure of healing after repair, and potential for irreparability. Management of MRCTs must take into consideration the patient's characteristics, clinical examamination and expectation, number and quality of muscle tendons units involved. Conservative treatment, arthroscopic long head of the biceps tenotomy, cuff debridement, partial repair, and superior capsule reconstruction are viable solutions to treat selected patients. The goal of tendon transfers is to achieve stable kinematic by restoring rotational strength and force coupling of the shoulder joint. The ideal candidate is a young, motivated patient with small degenerative changes of the glenohumeral joint, a massive irreparable cuff tear, significant atrophy, fatty infiltration, and functional deficit. Patients with posterosuperior massive tears have impaired shoulder function with external rotation weakness and eventually lag sign If the teres minor is affected. Latissimus dorsi transfer is the most used with results lasting for long follow-up and lower Trapezius transfer is becoming a surgical option. For anterosuperior tears, there is still controversial if pectoralis major is the best option when compared to latissimus dorsi although this last has a similar vector force with the supraspinatus tendon. Complications associated with tendon transfers include neurovascular injury, infection, and rupture of the transferred tendon.

Arthroscopic-Assisted Acromioclavicular Joint Dislocation Repair: A Modified Technique for Horizontal Stabilization Using Suture Anchors.

Acromioclavicular (AC) dislocation is a common lesion often resulting from a sports injury. Nowadays, treatment is still controversial mainly in grade III lesions according to the Rockwood classification. For most surgically treated AC acute dislocations, treatment is performed with an arthroscopic procedure that anatomically reconstructs the coracoclavicular ligaments. Increasing knowledge about AC joint biomechanics has underlined the importance of its horizontal stability through the superior and inferior AC ligaments. Moreover, the pattern of lesion tends to repeat itself, with the superior AC ligament being torn most frequently from the clavicular side in a peeling fashion. Therefore, the purpose of this note is to describe the technical aspects of additional horizontal stability through superior AC ligament repair using suture anchors.

Sternoclavicular Septic Arthritis: Partial Resection is Still an Option - A Case Report.

Introduction: Sternoclavicular joint (SCJ) infection is rare. Delayed diagnosis might lead to severe complications. Optimal surgical management is still under debate however extended resection of the joint requiring muscle flap coverage appears to be the favored approach nowadays in the cases with bony involvement. Case Presentation: A 58-year-old man complained of isolated left shoulder and anterior chest pain for over a month. Careful examination revealed a mass over the SCJ. A Computed tomography scan confirmed joint effusion and adjacent bone erosion, with no retrosternal involvement, consistent with SCJ septic arthritis with significant bony involvement. Conclusion: This case illustrates how a heightened index of suspicion is essential for diagnosis and prompt treatment, and how partial resection was effective and resulted in complete recovery of range of motion and pain resolution, despite bony involvement. There were no signs of recurrence 1 year after surgery.

Short-term results (1 year) of vented versus solid polyetheretherketone anchors in treatment of rotator cuff tears.

BACKGROUND: Due to the rotator cuff retear after being surgically repaired, some strategies have been developed. The authors verified that the possibility of polyetheretherketone (PEEK) vented anchors promoted a better clinical and healing process than PEEK solid anchors. METHODS: A prospective and randomized study was designed with 38 patients treated with PEEK anchors, 18 of whom with vented anchors and 20 with solid ones. Demographic, clinical and radiologic data were collected before and during surgery (time 0) and at 12 months of follow-up. RESULTS: In the final follow-up (12 months), there was no difference in the visual analogic scale (VAS) scale between groups (1.7 points vs 1.9 points; p = 0.731), neither in the DASH score (34.2 points vs 23.9 points; p = 0.268), nor in absolute Constant score (76.9 points vs 77.3 points; p = 0.910). In MRI, 10 patients had their cuff tear healed in the vented group and 15 in the solid group (p = 0.173). CONCLUSION: The new designed vented anchors do not add any advantage when compared to solids ones, at least within the first year after surgery.

How to measure a Hill-Sachs lesion: a systematic review.

Quantifying bone loss is important to decide the best treatment for patients with recurrent anterior glenohumeral instability. Currently, there is no standard method available to make a precise evaluation of the Hill-Sachs lesion and predict its engagement before the surgical procedure. This literature review was performed in order to identify existing published imaging methods quantifying humeral head bone loss in Hill-Sachs lesions.Searches were undertaken in Scopus and PubMed databases from January 2008 until February 2018. The search terms were "Hill-Sachs" and "measurement" for the initial search and "Hill-Sachs bone loss" for the second, to be present in the keywords, abstracts and title. All articles that presented a method for quantifying measurement of Hill-Sachs lesions were analysed.Several methods are currently available to evaluate Hill-Sachs lesions. The length, width and depth measurements on CT scans show strong inter and intra-observer correlation coefficients. Three-dimensional CT is helpful for evaluation of bony injuries; however, there were no significant differences between 3D CT and 3D MRI measurements. The on-track off-track method using MRI allows a simultaneous evaluation of the Hill-Sachs and glenoid bone loss and also predicts the engaging lesions with good accuracy. Cite this article: EFORT Open Rev 2019;4:151-157. DOI: 10.1302/2058-5241.4.180031.

Evaluation and Management of Failed Shoulder Instability Surgery.

BACKGROUND: Failed shoulder instability surgery is mostly considered to be the recurrence of shoulder dislocation but subluxation, painful or non-reliable shoulder are also reasons for patient dissatisfaction and should be considered in the notion. METHODS: The authors performed a revision of the literature and online contents on evaluation and management of failed shoulder instability surgery. RESULTS: When we look at the reasons for failure of shoulder instability surgery we point the finger at poor patient selection, technical error and an additional traumatic event. More than 80% of surgical failures, for shoulder instability, are associated with bone loss. Quantification of glenoid bone loss and investigation of an engaging Hill-Sachs lesion are determining facts. Adequate imaging studies are determinant to assess labrum and capsular lesions and to rule out associated pathology as rotator cuff tears. CT-scan is the method of choice to diagnose and quantify bone loss. Arthroscopic soft tissue procedures are indicated in patients with minimal bone loss and no contact sports. Open soft tissue procedures should be performed in patients with small bone defects, with hiperlaxity and practicing contact sports. Soft tissue techniques, as postero-inferior capsular plication and remplissage, may be used in patients with less than 25% of glenoid bone loss and Hill-Sachs lesions. Bone block procedures should be used for glenoid larger bone defects in the presence of an engaging Hill-Sachs lesion or in the presence of poor soft tissue quality. A tricortical iliac crest graft may be used as a primary procedure or as a salvage procedure after failure of a Bristow or a Latarjet procedure. Less frequently, the surgeon has to address the Hill-Sachs lesion. When a 30% loss of humeral head circumference is present a filling graft should be used. CONCLUSION: Reasons for failure are multifactorial. In order to address this entity, surgeons must correctly identify the causes and tailor the right solution.

Surgical Treatment of Rotator Cuff Tears After 65 Years of Age: A Systematic Review.

INTRODUCTION: The objective of this study was to analyze current evidence regarding surgical management of rotator cuff tears in patients of 65 years of age and above. Our hypothesis was that surgical repair of rotator cuff tears, in patients older than 65 years, conveys good outcome scores. We have not found a similar systematic review in current literature. MATERIAL AND METHODS: Medline®, PubMed, Scopus, and the Cochrane Register of Controlled Trials were searched from January 1999 unto December 2015 for studies, regardless of language, including the words 'rotator cuff' and '65 years' or '70 years'. Inclusion criteria were studies (level I to IV) that reported clinical outcomes in patients older than 65 years, having undertaken surgical repair of a symptomatic rotator cuff tears. Arthroscopic, mini open and open techniques were included. Exclusion criteria were: studies with patients younger than 65 years, studies that did not use validated outcome evaluation scores as primary assessment tools and those with follow up under one year. This work followed the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses - PRISMA guidelines. Data abstracted included patient demographics, tear pattern, surgical procedures, clinical and repair results. Outcome scores were converted to percentages, allowing comparison of data between studies. RESULTS: After deep analysis, 14 studies met the inclusion criteria: 11 level IV studies, 1 level III study and 2 level II studies. Seven studies found statistically significant outcome improvements between pre and postoperative evaluations. All studies reported good or excellent surgical outcomes. DISCUSSION: Better results would probably be achieved if all studies had rigorous and homogeneous patient selection criteria, but the fact is, that even though this was not the case, the clinical scores remained favorable, and with statistically significant outcome improvement in all studies with prospectively collected data. CONCLUSION: Based on current literature, rotator cuff repair in patients older than 65 years imparts favorable improvement in clinical outcome scores and overall patient satisfaction.

Introdução: O objetivo deste estudo, é o de analisar a evidência atual no que respeita ao tratamento cirúrgico de roturas da coifa dos rotadores, em doentes com mais de 65 anos de idade. A hipótese proposta foi que o tratamento cirúrgico de roturas da coifa dos rotadores, em doentes com 65 anos ou mais, acarreta bons resultados funcionais. Não existe, na literatura atual, uma revisão sistemática com os mesmos parâmetros que esta. Material e Métodos: Recorremos à Medline®, PubMed, Scopus, e Cochrane Register of Controlled Trials, na procura de estudos entre janeiro de 1999 e dezembro de 2015, independentemente da língua, que incluíssem as palavras: 'rotator cuff' e '65 years' ou '70 years'. Como critérios de inclusão estipulámos, estudos (nível I a IV) que reportassem os resultados funcionais de doentes com 65 anos ou mais, submetidos à reparação cirúrgica de uma rotura da coifa dos rotadores sintomática. Foram incluídas técnicas artroscópicas, mini-invasivas e abertas. Os critérios de exclusão estipulados foram, estudos que incluíssem doentes com menos de 65 anos, estudos que não recorressem a escalas de avaliação funcional validadas, como ferramenta de aferição primária, e aqueles com tempo de seguimento inferior a um ano. Este trabalho seguiu as orientações da Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses - PRISMA. A informação colhida incluiu dados demográficos, padrões de rotura, procedimentos cirúrgicos realizados e resultados, clínicos e das reparações efectuadas. Os resultados funcionais foram convertidos em percentagens, permitindo a comparação de dados entre os estudos. Resultados: Quatorze estudos cumpriram os critérios de inclusão: 11 estudos nível IV, um estudo nível III e dois estudos nível II. Sete estudos reportaram melhorias com significado estatístico entra as avaliações funcionais pré e pós operatórias. Todos os estudos reportaram resultados funcionais bons ou excelentes. Discussão: É provável que seriam obtidos resultados mais consistentes, se todos os estudos incluídos tivessem critérios de selecção mais homogéneos e rigorosos. Apesar de tal não se ter verificado, os resultados clínicos foram, todavia, favoráveis. Isto traduziu-se numa melhoria dos resultados funcionais, com significado estatístico, em todos os estudos prospectivos incluídos. Conclusão: Com base na literatura atual, a reparação de roturas da coifa dos rotadores em doentes com 65 anos ou mais, está associada à melhoria dos resultados funcionais e a um bom grau de satisfação com o procedimento.