Elevated Critical Shoulder Angle and Acromion Index as Predictors of Symptomatic Rotator Cuff Tears: A Comparative...

Area of Science:

• Orthopedic Surgery
• Radiology
• Sports Medicine

Background:

• Rotator cuff tears (RCT) are a common cause of shoulder pain globally.
• Previous research suggests a link between critical shoulder angle (CSA) and acromion index (AI) with RCT.
• Variations in study findings necessitate further investigation into these radiologic markers.

Purpose of the Study:

• To investigate the relationship between radiologic measurements of CSA and AI and the presence of symptomatic rotator cuff tears.
• To compare these measurements between patients with confirmed RCT and a control group with normal rotator cuffs.

Main Methods:

• Retrospective analysis of medical records, radiographs, and MRIs.
• Inclusion of 160 patients with surgically repaired symptomatic RCT and 106 matched controls.
• Measurement of CSA and AI using both X-ray and MRI.

Main Results:

• Significantly higher mean CSA values were observed in the RCT group compared to controls, regardless of imaging modality (X-ray and MRI).
• A substantial percentage of patients with RCT exhibited CSA greater than 35° (87.5% by X-ray, 65.6% by MRI).
• The RCT group also showed a significantly higher mean AI measured by X-ray (0.80 vs. 0.64).

Conclusions:

• Symptomatic rotator cuff tears are associated with significantly elevated CSA and AI.
• These radiologic parameters, measured by X-ray or MRI, can be valuable indicators in the diagnosis of RCT.