Influence of supraspinatus retraction size on functional outcome after arthroscopic direct repair

The objective was to assess whether the size of the supraspinatus tendon retraction following a degenerative full-thickness rotator cuff tear influenced the functional outcome after arthroscopic direct repair.

A prospective comparative cohort study of 65 patients underwent arthroscopic rotator cuff repair with a follow-up of 24 months. The mean age was 60.0 years (SD, 9.2). According to the supraspinatus tendon retraction, patients were included into the shorter retraction group (≤ 20 mm; n = 32) and longer retraction group (> 20 mm; n = 33). Clinical outcomes were assessed with the Constant-Murley score and visual analogue scale for pain. Radiological evaluation included magnetic resonance imaging (MRI).

Postoperatively, both groups significantly improved functional and pain outcomes, with no significant differences at the final follow-up (p = 0.671). The mean time interval between the onset of patient-reported symptoms and surgery was not significantly correlated with the retraction size (r = 0.12, p = 0.066). The multivariate analysis did not show significant predictors of satisfactory functional outcome, especially the tendon retraction size (OR 1.0; 95% CI 0.9-1.1; p = 0.728).

In degenerative tears, the size of the supraspinatus tendon retraction was not correlated with the duration of the symptoms. The tendon retraction of up to 4 cm did not influence the functional outcome at 24 postoperative months, regardless of the arthroscopic repair technique of one or two rows.