Lower trapezius tendon transfer for irreparable rotator cuff injuries: a scoping review

Rotator cuff tears are a common source of shoulder pain and dysfunction. An irreparable rotator cuff tear poses a particular treatment challenge. There have been few studies reporting the outcomes of lower trapezius tendon (LTT) transfer for irreparable rotator cuff injuries. Therefore, the purpose of this review is to summarize the postoperative functional outcomes and complications of patients undergoing a LTT transfer for massive irreparable rotator cuff injuries.

A scoping review was performed using the Medline, Embase, Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials, and Google Scholar databases with the search terms "trapezius" AND "transfer." Of 362 studies included for initial screening, 37 full-text citations were reviewed, with 5 studies meeting all the inclusion criteria to be included in the review. Two reviewers extracted data on study design, patient demographics, surgical technique, functional outcomes, range of motion (ROM), and complications for each study according to the predefined criteria.

Improvements in the preoperative to postoperative functional status, identified using the Disabilities of the Arm, Shoulder, and Hand (50.34 to 18), The American Shoulder and Elbow Surgeons Score (48.56 to 80.24), Visual Analog Scale (5.8 to 1.89), Single Assessment Numeric Evaluation (34.22 to 69.86), and Subjective Shoulder Value (52.24 to 77.66), were evident across all 5 studies. Preoperative to postoperative increases in ROM were seen for flexion (85 to 135), external rotation (18 to 52), and abduction (50 to 98). The overall complication rate was 18%, with seroma formation (8%) as the most common postoperative complication.

Our analysis showed that LTT transfer improved postoperative function, ROM, and pain for patients with irreparable rotator cuff tears with an overall complication rate of 18%. Future controlled studies are required to directly compare LTT transfer to other tendon transfers and other surgical techniques for irreparable rotator cuff tears.