Infraspinatus delamination does not affect supraspinatus tear repair

Supraspinatus full-thickness tears with associated infraspinatus delamination are a frequent lesion, although the results of repair have not been reported. We retrospectively identified 35 patients treated for this cuff lesion among 378 open repaired full-thickness cuff tears. The aim of the study was to assess the subjective, objective, and anatomic outcomes of a subset of patients with supraspinatus tears involving delamination of the whole infraspinatus tendon. Thirty of the 35 patients were reviewed with magnetic resonance imaging at a minimum followup of 2 years (mean, 3.5 years; range, 2-6.5 years). The mean nonweighted Constant-Murley score at followup was 80/100 points, with an average gain of 17 points. Magnetic resonance imaging revealed all supraspinatus tendons but two were continuous. We observed no tear of the infraspinatus tendon, although a persistent delamination was present in 11 cases. One half of the patients had minor weakness in external rotation. One third of the infraspinatus muscles had minor fatty infiltration. Conservation of the infraspinatus tendon after closing the delamination did not seem to compromise the outcome of the supraspinatus repair. Avoiding resection of the infraspinatus delamination and treatment with simple curettage and closure yields satisfactory midterm functional and anatomic results.